Care Package Precure
by Tabby Kattene
Summary: At Camp Breezy Bridge, girls are asked to leave their comfort zone and try to overcome their fears. Though fifteen-year-old Mallory Marsh expects that, she doesn't realize that little action will turn her into a magical girl. Together with her new friends and Myfanwy, a fairy from another world, she becomes one of the Care Package Precure, warriors of bravery, courage, and love!
1. Incoming: Cure Marshmallow Appears!

The small pink and orange crow perched precariously on a stack of papers that must have been a half a foot tall; certainly, they were at least larger than she was. Next to her, a midnight blue jay slept restlessly. Occasionally, her wings would shoot up as though she might take flight even in her dreams. The crow had been throwing her friend sympathetic glances throughout the night, but now even those had ceased. The papers were too important.

"I have it," the crow muttered. "I just need Kerensa Carys to check it… maybe Vesta too… and then…"

The bluejay's wing spread out and hit the crow's back. "Yikes!" exclaimed the crow. She grabbed her friend's wing and tugged on it. "Wake up, Hestia! I've got what I need." Hestia murmured something and turned away. "Seriously! Get up!" continued the crow. "We have to get this to my sister."

With a groan, Hestia stood. "Myfanwy, would five more minutes hurt-caw?" she said pleadingly. Her voice was babyish, testament to how ten years could make a lot of a difference in a fairy. Myfanwy was nearly grown. Not quite old enough to be in the Queen's army, of course, but that just meant she could do different things to save the Hearth Queendom. Such as read over important scholarly issues in search of something that could help. Or, more accurately, such as babysitting her smaller cousin.

Myfanwy scooped Hestia into her wings and began to toddle off, but Hestia wiggled out. "Fine, fine-caw. I'll fly-caw!"

"Good. We'll need to be quick. There isn't much time before Color War returns, and I need to let my sister know how to stop it." Grabbing the first paper off the pile, Myfanwy took to the sky. Hestia followed shortly after.

As they flew, Myfanwy found herself with too much time to think by, and much too much to think about. Color War was the main focus of these thoughts. Color War was an army from another world that had arrived just over a month ago to conquer Myfanwy and Hestia's homeland. However, the people of the Hearth Queendom… and especially the ruling queen… were strong, easily able to drive them away. However, Color War was ruthless. Day after day, week after week, they returned. Those who got too close to one of the invading generals often found themselves turned into monsters, known as Humglums. The Hearth Queendom's forces dwindled. Now, even with every able fairy fighting, the fate of the place that Myfanwy had lived all her life seemed unsure.

Still, she had to be brave. There were whisperings that the only way to remain safe from the Color War was to keep courage in your heart, and Myfanwy didn't intend to give these alien soldiers a single advantage.

* * *

 _OP: Magical Story~Time_

* * *

She had to be brave. Teenage girls could smell fear on each other, more or less, and Mallory Marsh didn't want to give her new peers a single advantage. Not with her fate so unsure, her stomach twisting into knots as she thought of it. Not with her dad, so very, very clueless, standing right behind her with a wide grin.

He put a dark hand down on Mallory's slightly lighter shoulder. "What's wrong?" he asked her. "You've never been nervous going to camp before, and you've been going for ten years now!"

Mallory bit her lip to prevent herself exploding. Mr. Marsh didn't get that things were different now. At fifteen years old, she was now an official Counselor in Training. On top of that, her old camp had run out of spaces alarmingly quick. By the time she started to sign up, every single one had been filled. She'd had to turn to a different camp to do her training, one she'd never been to before.

Camp Breezy Bridge was _not_ Camp Woodwake. The weather was ten degrees cooler than she was used to… she'd never expected to need a sweatshirt in the summer before. Rustic cabins replaced spartan tents, and though she'd expected less trees than her woody home camp, she actually found that Breezy Bridge had more. Everywhere Mallory looked, she found more differences, culminating in the look of the staff member coming towards her.

The counselors at Breezy Bridge seemed so young from Mallory's point of view… perhaps since she hadn't grown up looking towards them like idols, she could appreciate that they were only three or so years older than she was herself. This one was no exception. Despite her height… she was so tall!... there was a childlike grin on her face as she jogged to meet Mallory. Her strawberry blonde hair was tied into a half-braided ponytail, and at least four inches of both pale and freckled arms were covered in friendship bracelets. If not for her far-from-pristine staff uniform, she could have easily been mistaken for a camper.

She skidded to a stop in front of Mallory and her dad. "Hey! Welcome to Camp Breezy Bridge. Are you looking for the preteen units? They're a little farther down the trail. I can show you the way if you'd like."

For a moment, Mallory wanted to hide behind her father like the little girl that this woman thought she was, but she took a deep breath and stepped forward. "Actually, I'm fifteen, and I'm a CIT. My name is Mallory Marsh."

Most people, Mallory noted, looked a little bit taken aback when she told them she wasn't eleven or twelve. To her credit, the counselor nodded. "Sorry about that. I shouldn't have assumed. Anyway, my name is Biddy, and I'm the assistant leadership counselor here at Camp Breezy Bridge. Come on into the CIT cabin and meet the others! We've all been waiting to see who our last friend was going to be."

Mallory's dad smiled warmly down at her. "Are you going to be okay if I head out now?"

 _No!_ screamed Mallory's heart, but she swallowed hard and nodded. After one last pat on her back, her dad turned to go, and she and Biddy started into the cabin-filled unit.

* * *

The Hearth Queendom was by no means small, but it was definitely small for a nation, only the size of a large city. Most of the important aspects of the kingdom all resided inside one large building. To outsiders, the Crystal Castle was incredibly impressive… easily over five hundred times the height of any fairy, it gleamed and shone. The outside was completely made of quartz of reds, oranges, pinks, and yellow. Like Myfanwy, it was a lovely gradient sunset pattern. Large, rounded windows and doors lined in white marble were usually open to allow all in. However, today, in the heat of war, they were closed and locked. Still, that didn't prevent anyone from glancing the magnificent crystal spires and thatched roofing that young bird-like fairies often loved to play on.

Today there was no time for even a quick game of tag on the magnificent building. Myfanwy and Hestia swooped downwards towards the main entrance. One touch of a wing to a glowing panel next to it allowed Myfanwy entrance.

The hallways inside were bare, normally a rare treat that allowed the birds full view of the magnificent rainbow crystal mosaic that made up the floor. There was no time to stare today, however. "To the throne room," ordered Myfanwy.

* * *

Inside, the cabin looked just as rustic as it had from the outside. Six bunk beds lined one wall, with two more in a small off-shooting room… the counselor quarters. On the other wall, Mallory observed a row of neat dressers. A few girls put things neatly away into them; the rest seemed to hang out on their beds, chatting or reading quietly. When Biddy and Mallory took a step into the room, everyone turned to look. Mallory blushed furiously, suddenly even more shy than before.

"Guys, this is Mallory, the last CIT!" Biddy said. "So. Who has the extra bunk?"

There was a beat of silence before a Japanese-American girl with shoulder-length dark hair raised her hand lazily. "Me."

Biddy smiled. "Great! Mallory, you can share the bunk bed with Harper. She's the one over at the other end of the room. I'll be around if you need anything, but I'll let you set up. Okay?"

Mallory nodded mutely and began to walk towards her bed. Nobody except Harper seemed to be looking at her anymore, but Harper was staring enough for everyone. When Mallory was close, Harper smiled. "You can take the top bunk. I prefer the bottom."

That suited Mallory just fine. She hated bottom bunks; they always seemed to involve hitting your head first thing in the morning. When she'd flung her backpack up to claim the bed, Harper began to talk to her. "She said your name was Mallory, right? I'm Harper Hoshikaze. You're new to Camp Breezy Bridge, right?"

"Y-yeah. CIT at Camp Woodwake was full this year… this was the most similar camp we could find."

"And it's still not too similar, is it?" Harper shook her head in sympathy. "I transferred from Camp Oginali five years ago, so I know how it is. Still, to start somewhere new during your CIT year… that takes a lot of bravery."

Mallory felt her blush get deeper. "No, I'm not really that brave. I just… I don't think I could bear being just another camper with all my friends in CIT." When Mallory thought about it, her reasons for transferring were more about running away than being brave, which made her start to squirm.

"Don't be silly!" said another voice. Mallory looked behind her to see a tanned girl with stick-straight platinum blonde pigtails hanging off the top bunk next to hers. "You're here, and that's still super awesome, so stop being such a downer."

Harper half-rolled her eyes, but she was smiling. "Mallory, this is Vita Odhran. She's sorry for anything she says that's not thoughtful. Really."

"I think about everything I say!" Vita protested.

"Only when you're talking to Delcine, and sometimes not even then," countered Harper. She turned to Mallory and explained. "Delcine Goode is Vita's best friend. They always come to camp together. They're also total opposites. Vita's unaware and blunt, Delcine is shy, delicate, and soft."

"Am _not_ ," argued two totally opposite voices… the high and loud one being Vita's, and a lower, softer one coming from a blanket at the bottom bunk. For the first time, Mallory noted that there was a girl there, only a bit larger than Mallory herself and with a similar, if slightly darker, skin and hair color.

Mallory got a sinking feeling that everyone here had been friends for years, not just Delcine and Vita. Around her, girls talked and joked happily, catching up on the things that had happened over the school year. Even now, Harper, Vita, and Delcine had lost interest in Mallory and were playfully arguing about their personality traits. As Mallory climbed up into her bunk, she started to feel nervousness settle into her stomach, accompanied by a sudden strain of nausea.

It seemed hours, but was really only minutes, until Biddy clapped to get the cabin's attention. "All right!" she said cheerfully. "Now that we're all here, let's go outside and get started!"

Still murmuring to each other, girls began to file out. Mallory couldn't bring herself to move. When everyone else was gone, Biddy came over to her. "Mallory, are you okay?" she asked.

Mallory nodded, then reconsidered and shook her head. "I feel sick," she admitted. "I think it's only nerves, but it wouldn't make a good impression if I threw up, I think."

Biddy smiled sympathetically. "Why don't you lie down? I'll check on you in an hour or so, okay?"

"Mmmhmm."

"Oh, but before I go… I have something for you." She handed Mallory a metal brooch with a golden finish. It was shaped like a four leaf clover, and the letters "CIT" were inscribed in the middle. "Everyone else is getting theirs in a moment, but you should have one now instead of later if you're going to try to sleep. Now, anyway. Want me to turn out the light?"

"Yes, please."

Bitty walked to the door, the light snapped off, and the cabin door closed, finding Mallory alone. She wasn't sure if she liked it that way or not.

* * *

 _EYECATCH 1: A brief montage of Mallory images: petting an alpaca, making a s'more, and finally, twirling around as Cure Marshmallow with a cute smile._

 _EYECATCH 2: Myfanwy and Hestia fly in circles, then fall into the arms of Mallory. She is surrounded by the two CIT counselors and all of the CITs. Together, they grin, looking for all the world like the best of friends._

* * *

Queen Kerensa Carys held her long, mahogany staff tightly as she fenced with the zombie-like monster amidst the splendor of the throne room. "Humglum, if it is only you, know you will soon be defeated!" she cried. Then, her voice softened. "And Abbeline, if you can hear me in this monstrous, fearful form… oh, I'm so sorry."

She thrust her staff through the Humglum, and it burst into sparks.

Myfanwy froze. The action did not look easy. "Big sis-crow?" she whispered. Next to her, Hestia was crying.

Kerensa looked at them and tried to smile, but it came out too weary, too sad. She'd neglected her natural fairy form in favor of her more athletic… but much more expressive… human form. "Girls… I regret you had to see that. It is growing more difficult to defeat them day by day." Sweat collected on her medium-brown brow, her silver crown was lopsided, and her auburn hair was falling out of its ponytail. Difficult looked like an understatement.

"Let me help," Myfanwy insisted.

"No. There are other tasks for you, my sister. Other… other worlds of tasks."

"Huh?"

This time, Kerensa managed a genuine smile. "Follow me, both of you."

They moved through corridors and pathways, around courtyards and rooms. Twice more did Kerensa encounter Humglums, and each one seemed more cunning and athletic than the one from the throne room. "They're made of fear," said Kerensa as the group walked. "Specifically, the fear that the Hearth Queendom will fall. The more likely that becomes, the easier it is for Color War to make Humglums, which in turn makes the fall even more likely. It's a spiral. We'll have to look outside our own world to fix it, I think."

Kerensa opened a door. Instead of a room on the other end, it led to a thick forest. "A liminal space."

"A space where two realities intersect," Myfanwy said automatically, explaining the term to Hestia, then looking back at her sister. "Is this where our help will come from?"

Kerensa Carys gazed solemnly at Myfanwy. "This is Earth, home to legendary warriors called Precure. They're often also known as "counselors." Find the Precure and assist them. They will care for you and Hestia… though do try not to get separated. When this is all over, when this is won, Vesta and I will come for you two. Until that day… until then, I place the crown into your hands. From the time you leave the Hearth Queendom until this is over, Myfanwy, you are queen."

"But Kerensa, that's your job! Why aren't you fleeing too? This queendom also needs you alive!"

"They need me as a general more than as a figurehead. You need to be the one they can look up to. I need to be the one making sure that they're alive to look up to someone." Kerensa Carys turned the silver tiara in her hand several times. With each turn, it grew smaller and smaller. After a few seconds, it fit Myfanwy's small head perfectly. Kerensa placed it atop her sister's head feathers, smiled, and said her final order as queen. "Now, go."

* * *

Mallory tried to sleep, but it was easier said than done. Daylight streamed in through the window next to her bed, and if she looked outside, she could see the eleven other CITs in a circle with Biddy and another counselor. Part of her ached to be out there with them. The rest of her ached, quite literally, because that would soon happen.

She played with her lovely brooch gently as she watched them. It was heavy, made well. From the looks of it, it was multipurpose too… able to clip into her hair, on her shirt, even on her backpack. She wasn't sure how she'd wear it, so she kept it snugly in her hand for the time being.

Soon, the group moved away, perhaps to go elsewhere for an activity, and Mallory was left with a clear view of the Breezy Bridge woods. The sun, still high in the sky, shone its rays through the branches, making it look almost heavenly.

 _Heavenly, but not at all like home._

Still, she watched the sunlight shine on the trees, and squirrels scuttle from branch to branch. She watched and watched and watched.

When the air began to unfold, she thought it was a dream.

Petals began to blossom from thin air. Each looked to be made of space, complete with swirling nebulae and twinkling stars. Mallory gasped at the beauty of the forming flower, which looked something like a rose.

Just as she thought it couldn't get any stranger or lovelier, a bird flew out of it. It was some sort of corvid, but its feathers were shaded like sunset, and even from the cabin, Mallory could see a strange mark on its belly. The bird flapped its wings experimentally, then… it seemed to see her. It flew towards her window with a strange speed. As it approached, their eyes locked, and Mallory swore that the bird understood a lot more than birds were supposed to understand.

Perhaps just not windows. It collided with a "crash."

The vibration made Mallory realize that she was definitely awake. Her stomachache forgotten, she climbed down her bed's ladder and hurried outside, hoping the bird was unharmed.

Outside, the rest of her group was nowhere to be found, and she was grateful. She scooped the bird into her arms. It was groaning miserably… were birds supposed to groan?... and rubbing its head with its wing, but quickly seemed to recover. By the time Mallory was inside again, it opened its beak…

… _and spoke._

"Who are you? What's going on? Where am I? Where's Hestia?" said the bird in a frantic and high-pitched voice.

Mallory gaped.

"What's going on? Is this Earth?"

"Y-yes. You're at Camp Breezy Bridge. Which is on Earth. I mean, I was pretty sure of that, anyway, until that flower… and space… and you…"

"That's my fault. I didn't expect that much magic to leak over, but it can't be helped when the Hearth Queendom is in danger, I suppose… I don't have any way to be discreet until I find the Precure…"

"Wait, what? Are you an alien?"

The bird snapped. "I'm a fairy, thank you! I can't believe you don't know who I am."

"T-then. Maybe try introducing yourself?

The bird softened. "Oh. Yes, that would make sense, I guess. My name is Myfanwy, and I am the princess of the Hearth Queendom. I'm sixteen years old and the top of my strategy classes at school. That's why I was sent here by my older sister, Queen Kerensa Carys, to find the Precure warriors who will protect this world and rescue my own." The little bird's feathers fluffed up in agitation. "Now. You."

"O-oh. I'm Mallory Marie Marsh. I'm fifteen years old and going into eleventh grade this year. I like swimming, boating, and going on adventures! Here at Camp Breezy Bridge, I'm a Counselor in Training."

"A… a counselor?" Before Mallory could respond, Myfanwy continued. "You're the person I'm searching for! Here, let me see that brooch!" There didn't seem to be a harm in handing it over, so Mallory complied. The little bird placed both her wings in it. Around her, a pink aura began to glow. "By the power vested in me by the Hearth Queendom and its leader, Kerensa Carys, I allow you to unlock your potential and find your place as a Precure warrior! Take this token and awaken!"

Myfanwy removed her wings, letting the light die out, and Mallory hesitated only briefly before picking her CIT clover back up. "Okay," Myfanwy ordered, "say 'Precure, lead me home,' okay?"

"P-precure, lead me home?"

Nothing happened. Not that Mallory was sure anything was supposed to happen to begin with. She'd never followed along with a talking bird before; she wasn't sure how far you could trust one.

Myfanwy drooped. "Come on! Those are the same words that Kerensa always says. It's got to be right."

"Maybe it's got a delayed reaction?" asked Mallory.

"No, no, that's not it. Probably you're just not cut out to be a Precure. But you said you were a counselor, right?"

There was a beat of silence before Mallory had the heart to correct the little fairy. "I'm a Counselor in Training," she admitted, worried that her new friend would fly away, feeling betrayed or deceived. _It wasn't my fault you misheard me,_ she prepared to argue.

Instead, Myfanwy waved a wing dismissively. "Then you should have become a Precure in Training. It's not right that you didn't. Unless you have too much fear or not enough belief, or something like that."

Probably both, Mallory decided. She decided to ask questions while the small fairy was stewing over her disappointment. "What exactly is a Precure?"

"A legendary warrior who can overcome fear and unhappiness to be courageous warriors for good," Myfanwy answered, though she seemed to barely be listening. "They defeat Humglums, the monsters that roam every world."

"Not this one," Mallory said firmly. "We don't have monsters." Myfanwy did the bird equivalent of raising an eyebrow, and Mallory backtracked. "Then again," she admitted, "we don't have talking birds either."

"Exactly. You didn't, and now you do. When I opened the liminal space up to come to this world, I opened it for everyone. But it couldn't be helped… Earth is the only place I know is safe to ask for help. It's where my sister told me to go."

The ground rumbled beneath Mallory's feet, and Myfanwy's eyes widened. "Speak of someone, and they'll appear-crow!" she murmured, then blushed. "Mallory, we need to go back outside!"

"Why?"

The ground shook again. "Because even if you aren't a Precure, a Precure will be there to fight. They can help me!"

Mallory thought, then nodded. She didn't like it, but she was sure that Myfanwy didn't like her current situation. It was a tradeoff.

She ran outside, the bird still clutched tight into her arms, and felt a giant shadow over her. Looking up, she could see a large tree the size of a skyscraper. It was moving, stomping from one place to the other like five-year-old, with no rhyme or reason. "A treant," Myfanwy breathed.

The ground shook threateningly as the being stopped. Mallory stood there with her brooch in hand. "What can I do?" she cried.

"Become Precure! Like you're supposed to! Every leader here has the potential-crow!" Myfanwy responded as tears began to well in her sparkling pink eyes. "I don't see anyone else… there's supposed to be _someone_ …! Save us-crow!"

"But I'm not a leader! I'm just a Counselor in Training! I-I'm afraid I can't do anything to help. I'm useless here, and Biddy's gone with everyone else…"

Mallory too was starting to cry, and the tears only came faster when the tree-like monster began to part the great birch and oak trees that shaded the girl and the fairy as easily as if they were grass. As it moved, it was accompanied by the sounds of a young woman laughing: "Ohohohohoho!"

"Xanthe! The first Color War general! And a Humglum as well," Myfanwy choked. "Mallory, please…"

It seemed too late. Xanthe was already flipping gracefully from a low branch and onto the ground. She landed silently, her hands holding out an uneven, claylike bead. It was inelegant, grey with lumps, like a second grader's botched arts and crafts project. "Did I hear someone say they were afraid, hohoho? Then come, let us see those deep, dark fears!"

The bead glistened and grew until Mallory and Myfanwy could see false memories on it like a television. Mallory watched the other CITs turn away from her, not giving the slightest bit of acknowledgement. She watched herself hating Camp Breezy Bridge… she watched Myfanwy lying motionless on the ground as a tree monster started to step on her…"

"No! I won't let it happen! This is all in my control!" It felt like a lie. She felt powerless. Still, she knew that Myfanwy was counting on her, and she couldn't let the fairy down.

Xanthe laughed. "Not anymore. I am Xanthe, the most beautiful member of Color War and controller of Humglums like this treant. Humglums like you should soon be!" She cleared her throat before continuing. "As I see your fears… let them become!"

Xanthe hurled the bead at Mallory, whose arm shot up automatically, blocking it in its tracks. The grey bead dropped abruptly and without dramatics to the ground, and Xanthe stared at it. "What…"

A faint light shined from Mallory's hand. She opened her clenched fist to find the brooch to be glowing. Myfanwy's eyes lit up. "Mallory, this is it! Let the light shine, and follow your heart. You should know what to do."

As the light grew, Mallory nodded. For the first time all day, she felt brave.

* * *

From the shadows, where the light could not hit, a red-headed figure watched Mallory's stand from start to finish. By the time the pink light began to cover the CIT, the shadow-cloaked young woman was grimacing and shaking her head. "Great. Just exactly what I needed."

* * *

The pink light surrounded Mallory in a gradient… it was if she had been sucked into a pastel sunset. Inside its warmth, she found it much easier to be courageous. "Precure!" she shouted, not a hint of hesitation on her tongue, "Lead me home!"

Everything began to speed up. She heard music, far away notes that seemed to come from another world. Sticking her brooch into her hair like a barrette, intent on discovering where the music came from, she felt a little _pop!_ followed by a sudden heaviness to her hair. She looked to the side and caught a glimpse of pink locks held in place by silken white ribbons. _Is that mine?_

There was barely time to think when a warm, gentle wind thrust her into the air. Mallory laughed, sticking her arms out… it was like she was flying, only as she did it, her cute tie-dye top and denim shorts turned into a white leotard. Seconds later, a fluffy pink skirt and matching top appeared over it. _Oh man, this is so cool!_ thought Mallory, and she held her hands over her heart in a sincerely thankful prayer, which was answered only with the materialization of another clover-shaped brooch that held a large kerchief in place.

The light became reflective. She could see herself clearly, though she didn't look much like herself, more like someone tried to cosplay her and had the wrongest sort of body for it, and all the wrong clothes to boot. She was taller, if only slightly, and more toned. Everything from her dark brown eyes to her similarly colored curly hair had been dipped in pink. The only color she could see that reminded her of herself was her skin, which remained roughly the color of wet sand.

Then, she landed on rose colored hiking boot-clad feet. She waved her arms, trying to catch herself… somehow, she felt even that action probably looked really cool on her. As she grew steadier, the light began to fade, just enough that she could see Xanthe's figure appear. The fearless feeling was still there, accompanied by a growing urge to just embrace it.

Mallory grinned. She felt like it was high time to embrace a lot of things… her new summer home, her new bravery, heck, even her new outfit. With that all, it probably called for a new name. A new identity for this new camper who already believed that Breezy Bridge was worth calling her own camp. "Protecting the promises of hearth and home," she bellowed, "I am Cure Marshmallow!"

* * *

 _ED: Summer Camp Can-Can_

* * *

 _Next time on Care Package Precure:_

Mallory: It's easy to face someone else's fears! No way am I afraid of sleeping at camp!

?: But you can't even face your own yet. I won't allow you to be Precure if you're going to get hurt!

Mallory and Myfanwy: Wait, what?

Mallory: Now I'm afraid that I'm not going to be able to protect my new friends! Next time on Care Package Precure... Magic! The Arrival of Cure Campfire!


	2. Magic: The Arrival of Cure Campfire!

_OP: Magical Story~Time_

* * *

Xanthe laughed. "Aren't you a little small to try to be a superhero?" she asked. "Aren't you afraid that you'll get hurt, little girl?"

Perhaps deep inside, she was. However, adrenaline flooded through Cure Marshmallow. Myfanwy seemed to notice. "Good job," the crow whispered. "Color War generals feed on fear. As long as you don't act afraid, they can't turn your worries into Humglums."

"Humglums? You mean this monster is…" Marshmallow gasped, and she felt fear begin to cloud her judgment. She tried to rein it in.

Myfanwy helped by continuing to talk. "Don't worry. They don't realize that they've done a lot of people a huge favor if we win. Color War generals can turn fears and worries into monsters, but if we defeat them here in the physical world, they're easier to defeat inside the heart of the person these feelings belong to."

"And if we can't defeat them?"

"Well. That's where it's a problem. Just… uh. Ignore it for now. The less you fear, the easier it is to win. All you have to do if you're not afraid is to distract the monster and then _overcome_ it."

Marshmallow blinked in understanding. "Oh! Because it's a fear. So if I can show it that I'm brave… it shrinks."

"Yes! Go do that!"

Both Xanthe and the monster approached. "Ohohohoho!" laughed the Color War general. "Don't be so naïve! Being fearless is all well and good, but it's nothing if you can't fight! Humglum! Attack her!"

"Humglum!" roared the monster. It began to bring a large, log-like limb down where she stood. Cure Marshmallow gripped tight to Myfanwy and dove out of the way.

She skidded on the ground, her feet gripping hard to dirt so she wouldn't fall over. Her breath was heavy when she exhaled… she'd been holding her breath. As she looked around, she found herself over twenty feet away from where she'd been. "How…"

"You've got super abilities now," Myfanwy answered quickly. "Use them to get out of this mess! There'll be time to learn and experiment later, okay?"

"Experiment with what?" Marshmallow asked curiously.

Before Myfanwy answered, the Humglum let out a low growl and charged towards her, arms stretched out so she couldn't run. Like with the bead, Marshmallow's arms shot up automatically. Her eyes shut tight in anticipation. Then, she felt light pressure hit her wrists… no more than the force of a teddy bear. Carefully, her eyes opened. The treant was pressing against her with what seemed to be its full force… however, to Marshmallow, it felt like almost nothing. She removed one arm and still had no trouble keeping the treant away.

 _Super strength. That could mean only one thing._

With her free arm, she punched the monster, putting as much force as she could into the blow. The Humglum went flying, right into the trees, which wavered, but luckily didn't break or fall.

Xanthe frowned from her viewpoint, over ten meters away from Marshmallow. "I feel so deceived," she complained. "I was expecting a new Precure, not someone who had an idea what to do. Oh well. That just means I have to step things up a notch. Humglum, stop playing around! Go full force at this Precure!"

"Humglum!" it agreed.

It gathered itself and began to race at Cure Marshmallow. Its limbs whipped at her quickly, their range of movement more like human limbs than those belonging to a tree. It was slower than Cure Marshmallow, and not nearly as strong, but with more branches than the new Cure could count, it seemed to have a slight advantage. As Cure Marshmallow jumped over low swinging branches and dodged the ones coming at her face, she thanked her younger sister for forcing her to practice jump rope until she was very good at it, and her older brother for making her play all those games of laser tag. She'd never expected them to have real life value.

She'd been dodging and jumping for almost a full minute by the time the Humglum managed to knock her off balance. A tree limb crashed into her stomach, and she doubled over; the monster took the opportunity to knock her off her feet. "Cure Marshmallow!" Myfanwy cried from the sidelines.

Marshmallow looked up towards the bird. "I'm alright," she lied… she could feel fear starting to creep back in, and a scrapes on her knees were bleeding.

"Marshmallow, retreat! We can find another way to defeat the Humglum later!"

Xanthe laughed her awful laugh. "Oh, silly bird… can't you see she can't retreat? My Humglum has her trapped in a tree prison!"

Sure enough, limbs and branches came down and began to enclose Marshmallow. The young warrior tried to find a way out, but every second, they got tighter, tighter, tighter…

"Oof!" Marshmallow heard the wind get knocked out of the Humglum. The next moment, it was ripped from where it was holding her and thrown effortlessly across the unit. Marshmallow watched, stunned, before turning to face the responsible party.

The girl who'd rescued her was incredibly tall, and had a deep red ponytail coming loose from an intricately braided bun. Like Marshmallow, she was dressed in a battle-ready outfit, but the style was distinctly different in many ways. Where Marshmallow's outfit consisted of a three-part skirt, shirt, and leotard set, this Precure wore a simple shirt over an even simpler sleeveless red dress. Long crimson socks and orange sneakers took the place of hiking boots, and her kerchief was less bow-like, less intricate. On top of everything, Marshmallow noted that the girl's clover brooch and hairclip gleamed silver instead of golden.

The new arrival's hands went over her head as she spoke, ending in an elegant flourish. "A shining light of warmth and health… Cure Campfire!"

Eyes narrowed, Xanthe spoke. "Another one? I may have to call in reinforcements… no… they'll take too long to get here… it's time to retreat. So long, Precure! So long, Humglum!" She flickered out of sight right before Marshmallow's eyes.

The pink Cure breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks so much. I was so worried that…"

"Don't speak yet," interrupted Cure Campfire. "We aren't quite out of the woods."

The Humglum gathered itself and stood. It looked weak, but still it clutched to life. "Humglum!" it cried, looking around… probably for its creator.

"Hold my hand." Quickly, Marshmallow complied with Cure Campfire's orders, slipping her own gloved hand into Campfire's bare one. "And then, on the count of three, jump. One… two… three!"

The duo sprang up. Higher and higher they went, until they were taller than the Humglum and every tree at the camp. Marshmallow gasped softly as they hovered for a moment, then slowly began to descend. Campfire barely seemed to notice the view, however… she was still giving instructions. "To descend faster… which is what we want to do… think heavy thoughts, and curl one foot up. We're going for the best kick that two Precure warriors can muster. I believe in us. Do you?"

Marshmallow tried to put the most determined look on her face. "Yeah! I think we can do it."

"You _know_ we can do it," Campfire corrected, and Marshmallow opened her mouth to agree, but time ran short. The two girls knocked the Humglum right in its oaken forehead, and with a moan, the monster fell over.

* * *

 _EYECATCH 1: A brief montage of Mallory images: petting an alpaca, making a s'more, and finally, twirling around as Cure Marshmallow with a cute smile._

 _EYECATCH 2: Myfanwy and Hestia fly in circles, then fall into the arms of Mallory. She is surrounded by the two CIT counselors and all of the CITs. Together, they grin, looking for all the world like the best of friends._

* * *

The girls jumped backwards, lightly with no force, and landed on the ground. Cure Campfire smiled. "Time to purify," she said. "Take the pin from your hair."

Marshmallow tried to comply, and only managed to get her pin slightly tangled. The monster, however, seemed solidly knocked out, and Campfire's serene expression told Marshmallow that there was no hurry. Eventually, the golden clover brooch was safely removed.

Cure Campfire had removed her own hairclip as well. With practiced ease, she tossed it into the air. "Follow along, okay? Blazing Batonette, appear!" she cried, and a stunning and sparkly baton that looked like something from Marshmallow's school color guard materialized. Campfire grabbed it and smiled.

"Blazing Baton…" Marshmallow started, but was interrupted.

"No, no. Mine's already the Blazing Batonette. You need to name yours something different, or the poor things will get confused," Campfire chided.

"Ah… okay… Bright Batonette, come here!" Despite the mix-up in the words, the clover disappeared and was replaced with a baton that matched Campfire's in all but color and in the simple pink ribbon fringe at the end.

Campfire nodded at Marshmallow approvingly. "Follow my lead," she instructed, and Marshmallow complied.

The two girls lifted their respective batons into the air and spun them intricately… Marshmallow was surprised to find that the routine seemed to be ingrained into her as if she'd done it thousands and thousands of times, the muscle memory reminiscent once again of those color guard routines she'd taken weeks to learn. She barely had to watch Campfire, as she felt when it was time to stop twirling and point at the Humglum. When the girls yelled the words to the purification, she was not following along at all, but almost leading. "Fears be banished! Courageous Finale!"

When the glittering spirals of red and pink finished dissolving the Humglum, Campfire raced forward and picked up the bead that it left behind. Marshmallow peered over the veteran Precure's shoulder. The item wasn't grey and badly made anymore. Instead, it was black and glossy, with a painted design on it that showed the moon and stars. Campfire sighed and smiled. "I think the person this fear belonged to didn't think she'd like sleeping at camp. Well, it should be a lot easier for her now, if nothing else."

"Can you tell all that from the bead?" Marshmallow asked curiously.

"Of course." Campfire nodded. "When you get rid of a fear, you still hold its reflection in your heart, but all that's left is courage. These beads are a representation of that. They also serve another purpose… while most of the courage goes to the girl who this fear comes from, carrying these beads on a necklace or bracelet imparts some of that bravery onto you. This makes you a little stronger for every bead you have. You don't mind if I take this one, do you? It's my very first."

"Uh, go ahead," Marshmallow said. She was a little disappointed, but Cure Campfire _had_ rescued her, after all.

"Now, one last thing," said Campfire. She held out her hand. "Detransform and give me the brooch."

"Wait, what?"

"You're obviously a camper. Even if I hadn't seen you transform, I haven't seen a Cure Marshmallow among the staff. We can't go around letting campers transform. You could get hurt! If I have to fill out more injury paperwork because you decide to go gallivanting around as a magical girl, then I will _not_ be happy."

Marshmallow paused. It had never crossed her mind that maybe Cure Campfire wouldn't be another camper. The other Precure warrior looked barely older than she was… but then again, she had just noted earlier that none of the counselors really did.

"You can't take the brooch from me," she argued. "It's my CIT brooch. Can't I just tell you that I won't use it?"

Campfire considered. "And you really won't?"

"Unless it's an emergency."

There was a sigh and another smile from the older Precure. "Fine. But if I think that you're using it in non-emergency circumstances, we'll have to have another chat."

"Deal."

The two Precure stood warily at each other… Campfire seemed to be gauging if she could detransform in front of a camper, while Marshmallow was just unsure how to do it at all. Eventually, the counselor seemed to realize this. "Just think really hard about your normal self," she instructed. "It's easy, see?"

Marshmallow watched as red hair faded into strawberry blonde, and as the red magical girl dress became the khaki shorts and dark purple top of the staff uniform. Her kerchief stayed almost exactly as it was, as did the silver brooch holding it together. Materializing next to it was a name tag that Mallory hadn't notice the first time she met this counselor. "Biddy?!"

Biddy smirked. "You can detransform, Mallory. I know it's you."

Mallory felt herself shrink with a shiver and her hair collapse, back to its curly dark brown mess. "How?"

"Because I had an eye on every other CIT, and you'd have to be at least a CIT to become a Precure. No other camper could have done it. Seeing you confront that Color War general only confirmed it. I'll admit, though, I didn't imagine you as someone who could be that brave that quickly. I thought we'd have to help you out a lot before you'd be ready to even jump in the lake."

"Wow, thanks," Mallory muttered, her sarcastic side slightly emboldened by the monstrous encounter.

Biddy only laughed, however. "Come on. It's almost dinner, let's get back to the group. They're hiding from the 'earthquake' in the dining hall, and they're all really excited to meet you for real. They were really upset you were sick… being the new girl, everyone's really curious as to what you're like and what you'll bring to Breezy Bridge."

Happiness flooded Mallory. She smiled at the shows of fear that Xanthe had unleashed… each of them had turned out to be unfounded. Perhaps things weren't going to be so bad.

Myfanwy flew over to Mallory and perched on her shoulder. "What about me?" she asked Biddy. "Mallory is the Precure I found, and I intend to stay with her, for your knowledge, whether she is active or not. She's proven she has the heart and the courage necessary to save my queendom."

Biddy blinked. "Oh man, I forgot about the fairy. Um, of course you can stay, friend. Just… well… how good are you at pretending to be a stuffed plushie?"

* * *

"This is ridiculous," Myfanwy muttered as Mallory tucked her amidst Miss Pony and Sir Bearsalot, her favorite stuffed animals. "No person with any knowledge of the Precure or Color War is going to buy that I'm just another toy."

Mallory gave the fairy a warning look. "No other CIT knows anything about either, so you're safe. Just don't talk when other people are in here, and we'll both be fine."

"Fine, fine, but I'll only stay quiet if you bring me some dessert from the dining hall."

With a gulp, Mallory nodded. She hoped with all her heart that Camp Breezy Bridge served dessert at all.

* * *

The dining hall was crowded and noisy, with each rectangular table filled with excited girls. Mallory slipped in next to Harper and a CIT she didn't know and offered the friendliest smiles she could muster.

"Feeling better?" asked the CIT she hadn't yet met, and even though they hadn't talked yet, the girl's voice was friendly and the smile on her soft pink lips was genuine. She raked one hand through natural hair as the other reached for a bowl of Hawaiian sweet rolls on the table.

Mallory grinned. "Much."

"We were really getting worried," admitted Harper as she waved a piece of broccoli on her fork. "First with the stomachache and then the earthquake. We'd almost evacuated when Biddy had to run off and get you. Funny, though," the dark-haired girl mused, "how we just went across the camp for the earthquake. I feel like we were supposed to hide under a table or our beds or something, not walk quickly to center camp. Maybe I'm wrong, though."

"Are you going to be able to come to the opening ceremony tonight?" asked the other girl.

Mallory nodded, then gave another small smile and decided to introduce herself properly. "Yes, thanks for asking. Oh, and by the way… I think everyone knows this, but I'm Mallory."

"Hi there, Mallory, it's nice to meet you! My name's Brooke," said the girl. She tilted her head with a lopsided beam. "I'm always happy to make new friends."

Thinking back to Myfanwy, Biddy, and all the girls she'd met so far in CIT… all the girls she feared would hate her… Mallory couldn't help but nod. "Yeah," she agreed easily, "me too."

* * *

 _ED: Summer Camp Can-Can_

* * *

 _Next time on Care Package Precure:_

Biddy: Now remember, no transforming unless it's an emergency.

Mallory: Right!

Myfanwy: Mallory! It's an emergency!

Mallory: But I couldn't transform even if I wanted to... I'm stuck again!

Myfanwy: Is the newest Precure doomed? Or can someone COME HELP!? Next time on Care Package Precure... Tethered! Cure Belay Joins the Team!


	3. Tethered: Cure Belay Joins the Team!

_OP: Magical Story~Time_

* * *

It was almost nice having to curl up to Myfanwy in order to keep the illusion of her being a stuffed animal. Mallory's nerves hadn't completely disappeared, but the surprisingly fluffy fairy truly made her feel better. She slept through the night with almost no problems.

When she woke up, most of the girls were already awake. Mallory climbed down from her bunk to find Harper packing things into a sleek purple backpack. "Morning," she said shyly… a lot of her bravery from the previous day seemed to have worn off.

"Good morning!" Harper responded as she stuck a spray bottle full of sunscreen into her pack. "You should get ready to leave for the day. We would have woken you sooner, but Vita thought you'd need some rest to recover from yesterday." Over from her top bunk, Vita waved, then set to tying her hair into a sloppy bun. "Biddy came in and told us we'd need our swimsuits, towels, sunblock, bug spray, and anything else we'd want to bring to activities." Harper frowned as she picked up two books and carefully analyzed the covers of both before putting the thicker one into her bag.

"Do we know what we're doing today?"

"Not entirely. Swimming lessons, I think, and some activity for the entire afternoon, but I'm not sure what it is."

"Okay! Thanks!"

Mallory pulled out her own backpack, a fabric bag with a pink and white candy stripe pattern and a gold buckle. She stuffed the necessary items into it carefully, then delicately picked up the still-sleeping Myfanwy and placed her on top. The fairy didn't wake, and Mallory was glad for it.

There was no good reason the fairy should come along, logically. Mallory had promised Biddy that she wouldn't use her newfound Precure warrior powers unless there was an emergency, and it'd be safer for the illusion if Myfanwy stayed in the cabin all day. Still, Mallory couldn't help but think of how boring it would be if she were stuck in the tiny area for hours and hours. At least in her backpack, Myfanwy would be able to see some new sights and perhaps go fly around in the forest when nobody was looking.

At the last second, Mallory looked at her clover-shaped CIT pin sitting on her dresser. The group had been informed that they didn't need to always wear them… only during ceremonies or when they got to intern with real counselors and work with kids. Otherwise, they could sit safely in their cabin. Mallory, however, knew her CIT pin now served another purpose. If necessary, it could transform her into a Precure. Though the need for such an action was unlikely, Mallory had decided that if she were to come face to face with the nefarious Xanthe once again, she'd rather have her magical powers than not.

She placed it into her pocket. Harper noticed. "We don't have to have that today," she noted, sounding puzzled.

Puzzled wasn't a good expression for Harper. In the last eighteen hours that Mallory had known her, she'd already gotten a fairly decent idea of what Harper was about. Slightly older than Mallory at age sixteen, Harper definitely looked and acted her older than her age. She was mature, cool, and probably popular in school. She wore her shoulder-length dark brown hair in stylish clips, and even her camp-worthy clothes were things that Mallory only saw in magazines. When pressed, Harper had admitted that her mother was a marketing agent who helped design ads to place in the same 'zines that Mallory often looked at… style-wise, Harper just happened to reap the benefits of having a mom working among some very nice designers' assistants who were aware there was a teenage girl in the house. "Believe me, without them and my mother, I wouldn't have a fashionable bone in my body," Harper laughed, but Mallory didn't believe that for an instant.

Mallory smiled as she thought. Eventually, she said, "I know. I just… I'm proud to be a CIT, and I want everyone to know it!" It was a half-true answer, after all. She truly was proud… but the reasons for keeping her brooch close did go deeper. She just couldn't simply tell anyone, unfortunately.

Harper nodded, accepting Mallory's excuse. She then paused, hesitating a moment, before clipping her own pin into her hair. "I'll do it too," she decided. "You're not the only one proud to be a CIT."

* * *

In ten minutes, the girls were lined up behind the two CIT counselors. Biddy, the strawberry-blonde Precure warrior, was adjusting her watch and answering questions that two of the CITs that Mallory hadn't yet met had. Next to her stood the other counselor, who Mallory had gotten to know at the opening ceremony the night before. Amelie was fair-skinned, tall but delicately built, and had straight brown hair… she almost definitely could have been a model instead of a summer camp counselor, and Mallory couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy when she thought about her own unruly curls and childish appearance.

The lovely counselor clapped her hands. "Alright, everyone, it looks like we're going to have a storm today, so we'll probably not have swimming or boating time. It seems like it should clear up in the afternoon, though."

Biddy nodded. "We're going to go over swimming and boating rules and procedures in the dining hall instead, then play some games, so stay there after breakfast unless we tell you otherwise."

The CITs agreed, and they headed off to the dining hall to get food.

* * *

Worlds away, another group gathered as well… a group that consisted of the generals of Color War. Four of them seemed more or less pleased. One, whose hair and eyes were yellow, was sulking.

"Xanthe, lighten up. It wasn't even a fair fight, was it?" asked a small girl with dark violet dreadlocks and long nails to match.

Xanthe frowned. "Since when have we cared about fighting fair, Plum?"

A redheaded man next to Plum scoffed. "At least Xanthe has some sense. All is fair in love and war, remember," he mused as he spun around dramatically, crimson coattails whipping Xanthe in the arm as he did. "That's why we were created! Cardinal, Xanthe, Verte, Cobalt, and Plum… five Color War generals to exploit the fears of our enemies and turn them into soldiers for our master's master plan."

Across the room, a preteenage boy with bright blue hair turned to snap at the others. In his hand, he held a Playstation 4 controller, which was hooked to a quietly humming system. Across the television screen nearby, cars raced blurrily. "Stop with the history lessons, nerds! I'm trying to concentrate!"

"Yes, please!" agreed an elderly woman with green highlights running through strands of white and black hair. "I've almost defeated Cobalt finally."

"Fat chance, old lady! You've never defeated me in anything!"

"Apart from every battle with Humglums we've ever had," she countered serenely.

Cobalt fumed. "That wasn't you! That was the monsters you controlled!"

As the pair of gamers bickered, Xanthe and Cardinal thought. "I'll go out to that delicious hub of fear and strike terror into the hearts of the Precure for sure this time," said the yellow-headed woman sweetly. She turned to face a nearby mirror, which reflected a comically princess-esque villain. "Today, I'll show them exactly what the Color War can do! Ohohohohoho!"

* * *

Mallory hadn't gotten a good look at the dining hall the night before… she'd been too distracted by the events of that day. Now, she saw that it was beautiful, more elegant than she would have expected of a summer camp. It consisted of one full floor and a mezzanine, and star-shaped lights hung down from the ceiling, illuminating the gold-colored walls. On the bottom floor, one side hosted a series of sinks for hand washing… across from it was an open cafeteria-style kitchen. On the other sides were staircases, and the middle had many long, Hogwarts-esque table, of which the one closest to the kitchen was assigned to the CITs. Four more grand tables decorated the upstairs.

As the group sat, Biddy and Amelie went to get the food. "I hope it's pancakes!" said Vita enthusiastically. "I haven't had Breezy Bridge pancakes in months!" She grabbed onto Mallory's shoulder suddenly. "You're going to love them! No other place in the world has pancakes like them!"

"What's so special about them?" said Mallory, puzzled.

Harper grinned. "The kitchen staff have perfected the art of hiding what's inside. You don't know what flavor it is or what's inserted into the batter until you cut it open and take a bite. They're called surprisecakes."

"They do muffins the same way," Vita said as she went to sit down at her own seat, "but I like pancakes better."

When Amelie and Biddy returned, it was indeed with the much-loved surprisecakes, apple juice, and bacon. One by one, the girls passed the food down the table, each taking some. When all was served, Mallory cut into her pancake. Immediately, a chocolate-chip core was revealed. She grinned and took a bite, only to find that they were delicious as well.

Across from her, Vita was brandishing rainbow-sprinkled insides, and Brooke, sitting beside her, seemed to have blueberry. Then, Harper cut open hers.

"There's nothing in there," she said quietly.

Immediately, several girls leaned across the table to look. "What?" "No way, there's always something!" "You could go ask for a new one!" "That's no good!"

"It's fine," Harper assured the group. "It's still a pancake, and I love pancakes all the same."

Still, Mallory noted that her face had fallen. Just a little bit.

* * *

Just as the counselors had predicted, it stormed hard and heavy. The good news for Mallory was that while all of the girls were trapped indoors, the staff didn't seem to supervise them quite so heavily. It was easy for her to sneak up to the second floor while the rest of the CIT group played board games downstairs.

As soon as she was alone, she opened her backpack. "Myfanwy!" she whispered. "Myfanwy, are you awake?"

The little fairy yawned and opened her eyes, nodding contentedly. "You let me sleep in, didn't you?" she asked.

"Yeah! Was that okay? Was it okay that I brought you at all? I thought it'd be more interesting than being alone in the cabin."

Myfanwy gave an affirmative shake of her feathers. "I mean, really, I'm okay with either. I wouldn't be alone, after all, I'd have… oh no…"

Mallory blinked as she watched Myfanwy's face fall. "Myfanwy, what's…"

"I lost Hestia!" blurted the bird. "I was so caught up in all the things that happened yesterday that I didn't even think about… oh no… what if she's hurt? What if Xanthe or one of the other Color War generals got her? What could happen! Mallory, we've got to find her!"

"Slow down! I don't even know who she is, and I can't do much if I'm just another camper! Tell me what's going on, and then we can get Biddy and ask for her help."

With a sniffle, the fairy started to explain. "Hestia is… my cousin… or maybe my niece? It's complicated. See, when I was little, Kerensa Carys… the queen of the Hearth Queendom… adopted me. Even though she's kind of my mother, she's more like a big sister to me. But I'm not that close to Vesta, her birth sister, and she's kind of like my aunt, so Hestia, who's Vesta's daughter, is like my cousin. Anyway, I babysit her a lot. When we were sent here, I was supposed to watch over her-crow."

"What happened? I saw you come out of the portal, but not anyone else."

"I don't know," said Myfanwy. Tears were starting to roll from her eyes onto her beak. "She could be anywhere-crow!" Then, the bird blinked and blushed. "I mean; she could be anywhere!"

Mallory picked up the bird and hugged her close. "It's alright, Myfanwy. We'll find her. I promise. Even if we have to get every person in camp involved, we'll find her."

She felt the bird begin to settle down. "Okay. First, though, we should probably stick to just us. I don't know how we could have the entire camp looking for her without explaining a lot of secrets."

"It's a deal," Mallory agreed.

Mallory went back downstairs to see most CITs still engrossed in the game. However, off to one side at their own table, Harper sat with another girl. Mallory made her way over to them curiously, just in time to hear hiccupping sobs.

Harper reassuringly had her hand on the other CIT's back. "Kendra, it's okay. We're all safe inside. Nothing can hurt us here!"

"My sister said that a lightning strike once burned down the arts and crafts building though…"

"That was a long time ago, and there's a lot more safety measures now."

"Still… I don't want to go on the high ropes later today if there's a storm now, what if I got struck by lightning all up high like that?"

Harper paled. "Wait, it's the high ropes course later?"

Kendra put her hand over her mouth. "Oh no! You didn't know?"

"Today's awful!" Harper exclaimed. "This is the worst possible first full day of camp! First, nothing in my surprise cake, then a storm, and now this? I… I'm gonna go. You'll be fine, Kendra. I promise."

As Harper walked off, Mallory hid behind a pillar, slightly embarrassed to be eavesdropping, though she hadn't meant to. She felt bad for both girls. It surely seemed like a bad day back for both of them, and she only wished she knew how to make it better.

* * *

The storm halted while the girls were eating lunch, much to the joy of Kendra and the disappointment of Harper. Though neither said a word, the change in attitude was obvious to anyone who was looking… and Mallory most certainly was.

The group trekked the trail that led to the high ropes course as soon as they finished eating. It was wet, half-flooded, but Mallory had had the foresight to wear hiking boots. They got covered in mud, but her feet stayed warm and dry, much to her surprise.

Though one part of her brain was busy worrying about her fellow campers as they walked, another was excited. Camp Woodwake, her old camp, was an adventure camp that focused on height challenges, obstacle courses, and trips to rock faces and mountains. She'd spent nine years that honing her adventuring skills, and had done everything from building natural shelters to jumping from platform to platform forty feet in the air. The Breezy Bridge high ropes course, which was roughly half that height, would be… well, a breeze. Still, it'd be fun. She hadn't tested her height prowess in about nine months.

When they emerged from the trail, moving branches to the side as they did, Mallory grinned at the look at it. It was much simpler than what she was used to… a ladder built into the side of a tree ended in a platform, which led to a Z-shaped series of tightrope obstacles. The first was a simple tightrope with a long rope to hold onto while you crossed… the next had several shorter ropes that dangled above, and the third was three tightrope wires twisted, so that you had to maneuver carefully to get through. At the very end, there was another platform with two exit strategies… a zipline or a giant swing.

Standing at various places were the adventure staff, counselors whose sole job was to monitor and help girls on the high ropes course. They gave encouraging grins from up at their stations, while one, perhaps the leader, stood confidently on the ground. "Hello!" she said, waving to the group. "Welcome to high ropes! Today, you're going to test the confidence you need for CIT by challenging yourself on our course, twenty feet in the air."

Harper raised a hand. She looked pale and almost sick. "Does everyone have to do it?" she asked.

The woman on the ground tilted her head. "Well, we encourage everyone to try, so… yes. You _should_ at least give it a go."

"I have to use the restroom," Harper immediately said, her voice low and raspy. Her eyes were wet and red as she turned and ran off in the direction of the nearby bathroom.

Biddy put a hand out as if to stop her, but then slowly set it back down when she realized that Harper was already as good as gone. "It's nothing to be ashamed of," she said, shaking her head slowly. Then, she sighed, composed herself, and turned to the rest of the staring group. "All right. I'm on my time off now, so I'm going to leave you with the adventure staff. Be the responsible and enthusiastic young women I know you can be, okay?"

There was a murmur of agreement, then Biddy left down a half-hidden trail in the woods.

* * *

Mallory had expected Harper to compose herself and then come back, but it didn't work out that way. It was half an hour through the high ropes session by the time Mallory realized that her bunkmate was simply hiding. She wouldn't reveal herself until the time was over, more than likely.

After already going once, Mallory was in line to go again, but the thought of Harper kept bugging her. "Can I use the restroom?" she asked Ella, the head of the adventure staff. Ella gave her the nod, and harness still on, Mallory headed down the path towards Harper.

When she got there, she found Harper sitting outside the small restroom. Though she was more composed than before, her eyes were still wet and red. "Hi," said Mallory.

Harper rubbed her eyes with her hands and swallowed. "Before you ask, I'm fine."

"You don't look fine. Can I sit down?"

"As long as you don't try to convince me to go up that nasty, awful, scary course. People have been trying to persuade me for five years now… the answer is still no."

"You're afraid of heights?"

Harper nodded. "Y-yeah. I don't know why, I didn't have a traumatic experience or anything, but whenever I'm up higher than like two feet, I get dizzy and nauseous and terrified. People keep saying I have to get over it, but why would I? In the real world it's not so hard to avoid things like looking out of the windows if I'm above the first floor, or taking the elevators. I can just… I don't know why I have to do this stupid, stupid ropes course!"

Mallory thought. It didn't seem like it'd be good to talk about the things she loved about being up high… the freedom, the view, the adrenaline. However, she couldn't think of what else to say. "You know, you could always come on and encourage everyone from the ground!" she ended up deciding.

"They'll try to make me do it," Harper argued.

"But there's no way they can if you don't want to. I know you'll face your fears when the time is right, but for now maybe you could stand your ground! And ask them some questions about how it all works. Do you know how all the safety mechanisms work? There's a reason we say 'on belay' before we climb… it's to make sure we're safe as we can be!" Mallory grinned. "Ask some questions, watch some people, and maybe... maybe decide that today it isn't for you. But it could be, sometime."

Harper nodded. "Okay. I'll at least think about it."

"Thanks!" Mallory stood. "Now, I'm gonna get back there before they think I'm hiding too! See you later, Harper, whether it's in five minutes or fifty!"

* * *

"On belay?"

"Belay is on."

"Climbing?"

"Climb awa-"

"EEEEK!"

Mallory and Ella were interrupted from climbing commands when a loud shriek came from Kendra, who had eventually gotten over her fear of thunder and lightning and the storm returning enough to find a place on the tightrope. She clung to a tree platform between two of the obstacles. "Spider!" she yelled.

Ella smirked and called out to her. "Think of it as a powerful motivating force to go forward!" Then, she turned back to Mallory. "Sorry. Climb away!"

Mallory hustled up the ladder with practiced ease; though the course at her old camp was different, both bigger and newer, the premise was the same, and she knew just how to put her feet in comfortable positions as she pulled her weight with mostly her hands. She had just stepped onto the platform, then the first tightrope, when the scream repeated itself.

"AHHHHH! HELP! SOMEONE, PLE-" The noise turned into strangled sounds that Mallory had never heard before; they were almost frightening. No… actually, they truly _were_ frightening.

Ella glanced at the other adventure staff, and one of them snapped their fingers. Immediately, every CIT froze… except Mallory. Instinctively, she understood that she had to stay as still as possible. _The only reason I'm not frozen too is because I'm a Precure, more than likely._

Seven unique voices called out the transformation phrase that Mallory had practiced in her head time and time again in the last 24 hours: "Precure, lead me home!" Then, in flashes of different colors, the adventure staff were replaced with seven Precure. They didn't bother doing introductions, only raced off in search of the voice.

It was moments after they left, seconds after a dangling and no longer completely secure Mallory felt free to move again, when the sky opened and the royal-looking Color War general Xanthe materialized. "Ugh," she said. "I'm just barely free of them… if I'd stayed a moment longer, they'd have found me. The Infinite Princess of Earth has way too many bodyguards."

Mallory stilled, though she could see her backpack on the ground rustling from the corner of her eye. Myfanwy poked her head out.

Xanthe continued talking to herself. "All I need is one more powerful fear… while the Precure are distracted with the one, I can ride the other straight to the Princess and take her… it should be a breeze. Hah! No pun intended, ohohoho!"

Myfanwy slowly, quietly, started to flap her wings, inching towards Mallory and pausing whenever Xanthe looked her way.

Xanthe, however, barely paid any attention. She scanned each CIT, passing over Mallory with barely a hint of recognition (or perhaps, simply not caring… Mallory looked frozen, and Xanthe knew that no bead would work on the magical girl). Soon, her eyes locked on Kendra, who was stuck still quivering from the spider. She pitched a bead at the girl.

"No!" shouted Mallory and Myfanwy in unison, but it was too late. Visions played out in the air of lightning strikes, clowns, and bugs of all kinds, ending with giant, fuzzy tarantulas.

"As I see your fears, let them become!" ordered Xanthe with a grin, and Kendra's clothes, skin, hair, and eyes began to drain of all colors. The color swirled up and took form into a giant spider monster with numerous eyes, eight fuzzy legs, and a morning-star shaped mark on its abdomen.

"Humglum!" it roared as it soared back across the tightrope and towards Mallory and Myfanwy.

* * *

 _EYECATCH 1: A brief montage of Biddy images: scolding a group of CITs including Mallory, dangling by her harness after falling off the high ropes course, folding an origami crane, and finally, posing as Cure Campfire._

 _EYECATCH 2: Myfanwy and Hestia fly in circles, then fall onto Biddy's head as she leads an activity. She rubs the bump they've made, then looks up at the camera and smiles anyway._

* * *

"Mallory! You need to put on your pin and become Cure Marshmallow!" Myfanwy cried.

"But Biddy told us to only transform in an emergency!" Mallory protested.

Myfanwy looked around. "Do you see another Precure? I don't! Mallory… this is an emergency."

For a moment, the fifteen-year-old girl thought, then she nodded, taking her pin out of her pocket. "Alright, let's go. Precure! Lead me home!"

Pink light surrounded Mallory as she placed the brooch into her hair. Once again, she found her old tee shirt and skort being replaced in favor of her pink and white Precure dress. White ribbons and gloves materialized, and her hiking boots turned clean and pink. "Protecting the promise of hearth and home, I am Cure Marshmallow!" she shouted as she landed on the platform.

Then, she looked down. The first glance told her she was still about twenty feet off the ground, which wouldn't have been so bad except for… "Where did my harness go?!" she noticed. Her breath grew panicked as she looked around, as if it would be laying on the tightrope next to her.

"You can jump and balance well, remember?" Myfanwy said dryly. "Your harness would have only gotten in the way, so the magic temporarily deleted it. It'll reappear when you turn back to normal… I think…"

Marshmallow made a mental note to be safely on the ground when she detransformed. She didn't mind heights, even enjoyed them, but she very much preferred being safe and hooked into a harness when she was in the air as a normal girl.

"Oh my gosh."

She glanced to the ground. Harper was there, staring upwards, but it wasn't in horror at the high ropes course anymore… it was at Cure Marshmallow. The Precure waved sheepishly. "Uh, hi, Harper!" she said, slightly surprised that the girl had come out of hiding so soon. "So I'm a superhero, I guess maybe I should have mentioned that. Or maybe not. It's kind of a secret. Don't tell anyone you know, please! Especially not Biddy."

Harper nodded, still obviously in shock. "I don't think she'd believe me anyway," she said quietly.

Marshmallow must have had enhanced hearing… she picked up on it even from twenty-five feet away. "Oh, believe me! She would. And she wouldn't be happy. Anyway! Stay there, or maybe get out of the way or something. Myfanwy, what should I tell civilians to do when I see them?"

Myfanwy thought. "It's a case by case basis. With another monster on the loose elsewhere, I doubt telling her to run would be good."

Harper's eyes were practically the size of saucers. "Is the bird stuffie…"

"Well… yeah? See, she's actually…"

"How about we explain it all later?" Myfanwy said sharply. "For now, Marshmallow needs to fight the Humglum."

Marshmallow nodded and leaped onto the tightrope where the spider monster was balancing. Quickly, she threw a series of punches at the thing, but the eight legged Humglum dodged easily while still keeping balance. As Marshmallow began to get exhausted, the thing turned and shot long, sticky web at her.

It threw her back against the tree that was at the middle of the first platform, covering her like a blanket she couldn't get off… in fact, the more she struggled, the worse it was. "Cure Marshmallow!" exclaimed Myfanwy, flapping her wings nearby. "Let me help!"

"No!" Marshmallow ordered. "You'll get stuck too."

Harper gasped as she watched the plight of her magical friend. "Mallory!" she called out. "I'm… I'm going to help! I'll find a way!"

Xanthe laughed at that, but it only served to make Harper more determined. With careful, shaky breath, the teenager approached the ladder and grabbed onto the highest rung she could reach. Slowly, ever so carefully, she pulled her body up until she was standing on the first step.

"Ohohoho!" Xanthe cackled. "A case of fear of heights! Time to unleash another Humglum, I see! This is almost an invitation, isn't it, pet?"

She tossed a bead down at a shaking Harper, and perhaps because of the girl's quivers, it missed. Harper's face grew ever more determined even through its tears as she put one hand in front of the other, her feet following, until she was most of the way up.

"Why don't you give it a rest, already?" Xanthe suggested as she pitched another bead. Yet again, it missed. "What kind of a person tortures themselves like this when they could just give into terror and fall into the blissful forgetfulness of a Humglum, hmm?"

"What kind of a person would I be if I couldn't help my friend?" Harper countered through sobs. "I'm almost there, and I won't stop!"

Xanthe laughed her awful laugh. "One step higher, and I won't miss," she threatened. "My Fearful Beads will extract all of your worries and transform you, as well! One monster to terrorize this Precure… one for the others… and soon, one to set loose on this pathetic world!"

Cure Marshmallow could see Harper bite her lip, but the girl pulled herself up from the ladder to the platform anyway. "I dare you," she said quietly as she turned to face Xanthe. "I've faced every fear I have head on now, and I'll do it again. Just try me."

"An invitation, how quaint! Didn't I tell you that this is what that ridiculous show was?" cackled the general, and she wound up the bead before pitching it at Harper. "If this is what you wanted, I could have done it from the ground!"

There was no arm to block it. The Fearful Bead hit Harper straight in the chest, and all three women watched as fears projected in the air, as if it were a screen. The bodies of a man and woman that seemed to be her parents… an image of stormy, murky, deep water… then, a vertigo-inducing image of the ground from fifty feet up… Harper herself, falling. Xanthe gave a sly grin. "Very few to choose from, but aren't they good ones? Why not see what your truest one is? As I see your fears… let them become!"

But the bead did nothing. Instead, Harper's brooch began to glow.

Myfanwy's eyes followed. "Harper! You… you…"

"You're a Precure!" Marshmallow said happily. "Just like me!"

"How that is when I didn't unlock your potential first, I don't know, but it's true!" agreed the fairy. "Now, all you need to do is transform. Say the words! You know what to do."

Harper nodded, and a light wind started up, one that seemed to usher in purple smoke that covered her. "Precure! Lead me home!"

The wind became tornado-like, a transparent spiral that shielded Harper from all attack. It didn't seem too necessary… everyone from the Humglum to Xanthe to Marshmallow was completely transfixed with the sight. It was hard not to watch Harper's graceful movements. Her hair grew thicker and turned a light shade of purple. As she moved her head slightly, it knotted itself into a bun and sidetail combination, reminiscent of Sailor Chibi Moon… albeit on only one side of Harper's head.

Then, Harper folded in on herself and let the tornado spin her around. One by one, each article of clothing transformed. A tank top turned into a white leotard, and a bolero jacket's sleeves shortened. Holding it closed was a purple kerchief and a golden clover that matched the one on her head. Harper's denim pleated skirt softened into a light purple cloth piece. Then, in unison, white gloves appeared on her hands, and knee-length hiking boots adorned her feet in place of the usual sneakers.

The wind began to fade, and Harper pointed emphatically at Xanthe. "Protecting the promise of safety and comfort," she said in a low, clear voice, "I am Cure Belay!"

Mallory could practically feel the stars in her eyes. "Cure Belay!" she said enthusiastically. "You're so cool! I'd hug you if I wasn't stuck!"

Cure Belay nodded. "Later," she promised. "For now… I have a spider to knock out!"

With a confident grin, the new Precure glanced around and located the spider Humglum. It was dangling from the platform that was across a thin tightrope from Marshmallow and Belay. Belay gulped nervously as she glanced first to the monster, and then to the ground twenty feet below. Xanthe, still hovering nearby, laughed. "Ohohoho, you may have conquered your fears once, but now you're still trapped by them! What a plot twist! Humglum, seize this chance and show her your best long distance moves!"

"Humglum!" the spider agreed in its monstrous, high voice.

It flipped around and began to shoot its long, sticky web right at Cure Belay. Almost instinctively, the girl ducked and rolled forward, going into a low crouch.

Then, Belay blinked. She had apparently just noticed that she was crouching on the tightrope with perfect balance. There seemed to be no danger of falling for a moment… then she started to wobble and cry. "I… I… I can't…"

"Yes, you can! You already have done so much!" cheered Marshmallow.

Myfanwy put a wing up in a celebratory, encouraging motion. "One foot at a time! Or just continue to roll, Belay! Either way, you can do it!"

Xanthe cackled. "No you can't! They don't know your fears like I do. You're helpless this far up."

"Don't listen!" pleaded Myfanwy. She and Marshmallow watched Belay grip the tightrope tightly, enough that it would probably imprint her skin by the time she had to let go… if she ever did.

"I'm listening to her," Belay said quietly. As she did, she raised her head up. "She does know my fears. You know what she doesn't know? My spirit. My soul. I'm never helpless, not completely."

Slowly, Belay removed one shaking hand from the tightrope and unsteadily thrust it towards the Humglum. "Blueberry… _Blueberry Belay Solaris!_ "

From her hand came a gust of wind with the same purple smoky sparkles that encompassed her as she transformed. The burst of air hit the Humglum and scrambled all eight of its legs around until it began to fall from the platform with a helpless yelp. Xanthe watched, stunned.

Belay smiled slightly, obviously still anxious, and slowly began to back up back onto the platform. After two minutes, she got there, just as the stunned Humglum started to get back onto its feet (and failed, collapsing back onto the ground). With a slightly more solid surface below her, Belay turned to face Marshmallow and repeated the spell. " _Blueberry Belay Solaris_!" she cried, but didn't release the magic from her own hands. The wind sucked in the webbing that enclosed Marshmallow and freed her. "Thanks!" said Marshmallow. "Now, ready to defeat that 'fraidy-cat fear once and for all?"

"Fraidy-cat?" Belay asked with a smile.

"Yeah! If it wasn't afraid of you, why did it go where it thought you couldn't reach? You terrified it! Now, let's go terrify it more together!"

From a safe distance from the edge, Belay looked down at the dizzy spider monster and gulped. "Just one thing. How do we get down?"

"We jump!"

"Um. Not happening."

Marshmallow reached out and clutched Belay's hand tightly in her own. "Would I let you get hurt?" she asked. "Would your powers? Would Myfanwy... uh, the bird?"

"Um, I don't think so… but… um. Would you keep holding my hand? And can I close my eyes?"

With a smile, Marshmallow nodded. Belay swallowed hard, and closed her eyes as she inched closer to the side. "Ready?" asked Marshmallow, but didn't wait for Belay's negative response before continuing. "One, two, three, jump!"

The two tumbled from the platform, Belay ever so slightly dragging her feet, but they still landed neatly on the ground. "You can open your eyes now," Marshmallow said. Belay did and heaved a huge sigh. "Then," Marshmallow added, "when you're ready, summon your baton like this, but use a different adjective. Bright Batonette!" She threw her brooch in the air, and it became her sparkling pink weapon, the shining pink ribbons shooting out from each end.

"Like this?" Belay asked as she unclipped her pin and tossed it upwards. "Breezy Batonette!"

Her question was answered when it twirled and transformed into a long shiny purple baton. Like Marshmallow's, it was decorated with ribbons, but instead of sticking out in a fringe, they were tied into bows on each end. Belay caught it with no hesitation, hugging it close. "Nice!" Marshmallow said as she admired the weapon. "Now, follow your heart and my lead."

The two spun their batons in circular motions as they spoke the words to the purifying spell… Marshmallow was pleased that it was as automatic for Cure Belay as it was for her. "Fears be banished! Courageous Finale!"

They pointed their sticks at the monster, and purple wind intermingled with pink sparkles to create a shining beam that hit the Humglum straight in its forehead. It roared in protest as the magic disintegrated it and turned it into a bead that dropped onto the ground. Cure Marshmallow moved forward and picked it up to find that it was silver with a yellow lightning bolt design. For a moment, she admired it, but then she turned to Cure Belay and held the bead out towards the new Cure. "Here," she said. "I was told these beads give Precure more courage, and make them stronger. I couldn't have won this without you… so you should have it!"

Belay moved to take it, then paused. "No. I have more courage already, without needing a bead. Besides, without you, I couldn't have gotten up there… or back down! Please, keep it."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes! There'll be others anyway, won't there?"

Marshmallow nodded. "Thanks!"

"Of course. Anyway, you can pay me back by teaching me how to get back to normal," laughed the purple Precure.

* * *

The other CITs started waking as soon as Belay and Marshmallow were Harper and Mallory once again. As they rubbed sleepy eyes, Mallory examined the bead. Her first one! It was another fear that she didn't need help to conquer… storms never bugged her, even if she was outside… but it was nice to have a physical reminder of her win against the Color War general and Humglum.

Harper had disappeared a few moments before. "They'd be confused if I wasn't here, and then I was," she noted. "So I'm going to pretend to go hide in the bathroom again. See you later!"

As Mallory rolled the lovely bead around in her hand, Biddy emerged from the woods. She took one look at Mallory, then at the bead in the girl's hand, and sighed. "Mallory… can I see you for a moment?"

Mallory nodded and began to follow Biddy, who was walking back towards the trail she'd come from.

"I thought I told you that you weren't to transform except in an emergency!" Biddy said as soon as they were out of earshot of the others, her eyes closed and one hand on her forehead. The other was on her hip, and the body language was clear. She was exasperated, but not entirely surprised.

Mallory nodded. "And it was! You were on time off, and the adventure staff had to go chase down the other Humglum. They put a sleep freeze on the others, I heard them do it, but I'd been in the bathroom with Harper and I guess they forgot in the heat of the moment. When I came back, that Color War general from before, Xanthe, was turning Kendra's fears into a Humglum, and I was the only Precure who could help her at the time!"

There wasn't technically a lie.

"And

Harper was hiding from the ropes course in the bathroom the whole time," Biddy assumed. "At least none of the other CITs realized what was going on, and at least Harper didn't come back and let Xanthe transform her fears as well. Harper's fear of heights would make a powerful Humglum, believe me. She can barely go up the steps without fainting."

Mallory didn't correct her.

"I guess that was an emergency," Biddy allowed. "Next time, though, call for one of us. You'd be surprised at how far we can hear."

She wouldn't, but didn't say as much. Instead, she asked a question. "Is everyone on staff a Precure, Biddy?"

Biddy thought, chewing on her lip. "If you know about Precure at all, I guess there's no harm in saying yes. Everyone is. You're perfectly safe, okay? Just try to be a normal girl for a few more years. If you end up on staff, we'll of course explain more. Okay?"

Mallory nodded, and Biddy walked away to check on the rest of the group.

Myfanwy peeked out of Mallory's backpack. "So many!" she commented. "I didn't expect that. No world should need sixty Precure, all active at once."

"Xanthe said the same thing, more or less," Mallory said thoughtfully. "And something about a 'princess of Earth,' too."

"The Infinite Princess of Earth, to be precise… I wonder what's going on."

"Yeah," agreed Mallory. "Me too."

* * *

 _ED: Summer Camp Can-Can_

* * *

 _Next time on Care Package Precure:_

Mallory: It's nice to be part of a duo, even if we aren't supposed to use our powers!

Harper: You mean that you aren't! Biddy never said anything about me!

Mallory: Ooh, loopholes. I like that.

Myfanwy: We'll need all the firepower we can get tonight… I have a feeling that Color War is planning something.

Harper: And I have a feeling one of my friends isn't going to like it. Next time on Care Package Precure: Taps! Cure Forest is Born!


	4. Taps: Cure Forest is Born!

_OP: Magical Story~Time_

* * *

Mallory woke up early on Tuesday morning due to the sun shining right through her window and onto her eyelids. She grinned… somehow, she managed to feel completely well rested, even after the events of her second battle as a Precure warrior. Quietly, she woke Myfanwy, the fairy bird she had become the caretaker of, slipped on her CIT brooch, and climbed the ladder down from the top bunk.

Underneath her, in a small lavender nightgown, her friend, fellow CIT, and Precure teammate Harper snored gently. Mallory shook the girl softly. "Wake up!" she ordered. "We've got half an hour before everyone else gets up. We can spend it doing Precure things!"

Most of the magical girls Mallory saw on television would roll over and go right back to sleep after such an awakening. Harper did no such thing. She grabbed wire-rim glasses from her night table and started to get out of bed. In less than a minute, the two girls (and one fairy) had slipped outside where their talking wouldn't wake anyone else.

"How are you feeling, Harper?" Mallory asked.

Harper thought. "Not as tired as I thought, but I slept pretty soundly… no dreams or anything. I was almost surprised when I woke up. How are you?"

"About the same."

"What did you want to talk about?"

Mallory gestured to the grass around them, and the pair sat down as Mallory began to speak. "I wanted to get you up to date on what's going on with Precure… you know about the magic, but not much else."

She told Harper everything she could think of… Myfanwy's arrival, how Hestia was missing, their counselor Biddy's status as a Precure and how that was typical of every member of staff. Finally, she finished off with what she had overheard Xanthe say the day before: "She's looking for the princess of Earth… the Infinite Princess, whoever that is."

"That's the question, sure enough," Myfanwy agreed. "Kerensa Carys is the Hearth Queendom's Infinite Princess… and I am… well, was… the Infinite Princess of the Legendary Land…"

"Wait, what?" Mallory asked. "What do you mean? Are there multiple Infinite Princesses?!"

Myfanwy nodded. "Of course! There's one for every world." As the fairy spoke, Mallory closed her eyes. She could almost see the fairy's story playing out in her head like a storybook. "See, a long time ago, the first Infinite Princess, who was a goddess, looked down on the universe. Despite being a goddess, she knew she could never be entirely fair, as some worlds would always attract her more than others, or need her help extra. In order to allow all places a piece of her attention, she shattered herself and gave a piece of her heart to each world in the form of a mortal girl destined to be a great leader. This mortal had access to part of the power of a goddess in times of need, but as a mortal, she could… can… die. When she does, the heart shard of the goddess is passed on to the next girl born, who in turn becomes the next great leader, and so on!"

"And… that's you?"

Myfanwy nodded. "I have the heart piece of the Legendary Land… but my world was destroyed by Color War when I was little. Kerensa Carys rescued me and brought me to the Hearth Queendom to live until I'm old enough to go and use the goddess's power to restore my own queendom."

"So would Color War want you? Are you in danger?" asked Harper, leaning forward intently with a worried expression on her face.

"No more than usual," Myfanwy assured the girls. "They want Earth's Princess, and so we must protect her at all cost! If they got her power, there's no telling what Color War could do!"

That settled, the group was quiet for a few seconds. Then, Mallory looked at Harper. "Can I ask you something?"

"You just did, but go ahead anyway," Harper returned with a sly grin.

"How are you taking all of this so calmly? I mean, I did too, but you seem a lot more… down to Earth… than I am. I bet you didn't even believe in magic until you saw me transform yesterday!"

Harper shrugged and smiled. "The way I see it is that I trust my heart, mind, and eyes to tell me the truth. Everything points to you… to us… being superheroes. So who am I to question it?"

Mallory bit her lip shyly and smiled back. "Let's both do our best then," she said.

Harper nodded. "Absolutely.

* * *

When they walked back into the cabin, they saw something stranger than any magic from the past two days. Vita Odhran and Delcine Goode were arguing.

"-can't believe you woke me up last night!" Vita said emphatically. "There's nothing in here that can hurt you. We're both fifteen, come on! Grow up!"

"Well, I can't believe you're telling me to grow up. At least I don't think there are monsters under my bed," Delcine said in her high, delicate voice. Unlike usual, her words were not quiet.

Vita's face turned strawberry red from its normal peach cobbler crust tan. "I'm not afraid of monsters under my bed. The cabin is safe, vampires can't come in without an invitation, and none of us can be vampires because we've all been outside during the day, so _hah._ "

Harper stifled a laugh. "Vita's afraid of vampires?"

From the bag, Myfanwy's muffled voice chided, "You shouldn't judge people on their fears! Both of you know as well as any Precure that people are sometimes afraid of things that don't make sense or aren't explained by a trauma or problem. The important thing is that fears can define someone if they let them do so; they can consume people, and in the end, that's what makes a Humglum, not a Fearful Bead! Vita could be afraid of shiny coins, and if she couldn't face that in the end, even that could be a powerful monster."

Mallory thought of a vampire Humglum, then a shiny coin Humglum. She didn't want either, but despite the fairy's words, she would have rather faced a copper image of Abraham Lincoln then a bloodsucking beast any day of the week.

On the other side of the room, the debate still continued. "Whether my fears are out of control or not, at least I sleep through the night, unlike SOME PEOPLE who are named DELCINE."

"I can sleep through the night! The fact is that I woke up on my own, saw it was dark, and considering you _were_ my best friend, thought maybe you'd kindly lend me your flashlight. Apparently, I was wrong."

The door to the counselor bunks opened, and Biddy stormed out. "Ladies!" she said harshly. "It is too early in the morning for arguing and screaming. Come on, you're CITs, and we expect you to work this out like the future staff members you are."

Delcine and Vita stopped, but continued to stare coldly at the other.

Behind Biddy, Amelie walked out, still in her flannel duck-print onesie. "Now girls, we're all going to get ready instead of watching fights go down… or participating in them… and meet at the door in fifteen minutes. Okay?"

There was a murmur of approval, and the girls all began to prepare for the day.

* * *

It was twenty minutes, not fifteen, when the girls were assembled, but the counselors seemed to have expected that.

Amelie clapped her hands beside Biddy. "Alright, so today we're going to get started talking about CIT duties and programing, including how to interact with younger kids. Plus, tonight we'll be dividing up into teams for a campout, and they're assigned… and set in stone." She cast a glance on Delcine and Vita… they were obviously together. "The groups are as follows. "Brooke, Kendra, Jasmine, and Brandy are group one. Sofía, Kaitlin, DJ, and Bing are group two, and Vita, Delcine, Harper, and Mallory are group three."

"You'll each get a tent, some cooking supplies, and food for the next morning. In addition, you'll be charged with coming up with a basic one-hour activity for a group of younger girls. We'll meet back at the cabin in the morning, as each group will be pretty close. Group one will be at the Singing Dock, group two at the Old Bridge, and group three at the Hazel Tree Clearing," continued Bitty. "You can make your own way there after supper."

Harper nudged Mallory. "The clearing is the best place for a campout. I wonder if they're compensating for the fact that the two lovebirds are having an actual fight instead of their normal little spats."

"Lovebirds?"

"They're almost like a couple. I'd say you'll see it in time, but honestly? This is a big fight, and I'm not that sure."

* * *

The day went by fast. Too fast, in fact, for Mallory's liking.

If there was one thing that Mallory hated, it was unpleasantness. She tended to avoid fights, shouting, and even intense debates. However, the CITs did almost everything together, and so she kept catching glimpses of Vita and Delcine out of the corner of her eye. By breakfast, they were screaming at each other from their usual seats near each other at the table. By lunch, they were pretending the other girl didn't exist. When dinner rolled around, they were on a full-blown sitcom-esque silent treatment scene.

When Vita nudged Brooke and said "ask Delcine to hand me the salt," Mallory realized that the night was only going to get worse when the two ended up in close quarters. Worse, close quarters _in the dark of the woods._

* * *

"So," Harper said as she set her notebook on the ground of the clearing. "I think we should create an interactive improv skit that the kids can participate in on rainy days. There's not much to do when we're stuck indoors, and for the little girls, some of the board games are a little beyond their reading skill. This would provide an hour or so of activity for them! What do you think, guys?"

"I love it!" Mallory exclaimed as she looked at the notes and art. It really was a good idea; it involved putting a dress up clothes box in one of the dining hall's unused closets, having a list of prompts up for girls to utilize, and even having accessible crayons and paper for impromptu props. When Mallory looked up into Harper's eyes, she saw that Harper was beaming, obviously proud. "And you have so much planned out. We won't have to do much except for figure out how to present this to Biddy and Amelie."

"Maybe we should add some ideas for the counselors who are supervising!" Delcine added. "Otherwise, though, I think it's really good."

Vita turned away grumpily. "I think that it's fine the way it is. Tell Delcine to stop nitpicking at things."

"Tell her yourself," Harper said sourly. "Don't drag me into your little spat."

Mallory frowned. "Harper, can I talk to you?"

Harper followed Mallory across the clearing and away from the other girls. "Yeah?"

"We're Precure, right? Defenders of love and friendship and all the cool and awesome things camp stands for, right?"

"Yeah?"

Mallory tilted her head with a grin. "Maybe we can mediate these two, then! We can use our friendship to help them out!" Harper started laughing, and Mallory frowned. "What?"

With a shake of her head, Harper explained. "When I was little, I lived in Japan, and I always watched all these magical girl shows, right? I was just thinking about how you're completely suited for this life if the anime is a good representation of it. Anyway, sure, why not? We can give it a try."

Mediating was harder than Mallory expected.

Harper and Mallory sat down with the arguing friends. "Look, we've all had enough of this, I'm sure," Harper said, "so we're going to stop going back and forth, and start talking about this like rational adults."

"But I'm not a rational adult, I'm a really angry kid," Vita argued, looking away from Delcine and Harper sharply.

Harper glared. "Would you say that in front of the counselors? We're here to prove that we can work together and be good staff members, not to tell them that we can't."

"And adults aren't allowed to get angry?"

"I think," said Mallory, "that what Harper is saying is that even if we are angry, it's important to be rational about it and not let it affect everything we do. This campout is important to Harper and me, and it's not really going so well. Can we at least put the whole thing on pause until tomorrow?"

Vita and Delcine cast twin glances at each other, eyes narrowed and scowls playing on their lips. "We can try," said Delcine, "but no promises."

* * *

It lasted until nightfall, when the girls were safe and snug inside the tent. As the sun began to sunk in the sky, Delcine turned on her flashlight.

Vita rolled her eyes. "It's not even dark yet," she complained. "The sun's still up, the moon is _full_ tonight, and the flashlight is barely doing a thing right now."

"Full moon, huh?" shot Delcine. "You must be worried about the werewolves, then."

From the look on Vita's face, she hadn't been until Delcine said that.

"That's it."

Everyone looked at Harper, who had a grim, grumpy expression. "I am so tired of both of you arguing! Go outside, both of you, until you can get along enough to let me get some rest. It's been a long day, and I just want to read and then sleep. Got it?"

Reluctantly, mumbling, the two obliged. As soon as they were gone, Harper and Mallory both heaved matching sighs of relief, despite the fact that the arguing was still somewhat audible from outside.

* * *

The sky grew dark and the arguing grew louder. By eight thirty, Harper was covering her ears with her pillow. "I'm sick and tired of this!" she exclaimed. "If this lasts a second more, I'm going to go out and do my own version of mediation, and neither of them are going to like it."

As though in answer, they could hear Vita yell "Oh, really?" from behind the fabric of the tent.

Harper slipped out of her sleeping bag. "They had to make me," she said irritably as she headed for the door to the tent. Concerned, Mallory looked to Myfanwy. "Should I go after her?"

"If you do, take me with you. I don't want to be alone with all this screaming going on," the fairy said emphatically. Mallory obliged, scooping Myfanwy into her backpack and wearing it out.

Harper stood between the two ex-friends, glaring at them over her eyeglasses, which was the most intimidating kind of glare in Mallory's opinion. "Now, look. We're gonna do some enforced chatting about what the heckedy you two can do to stop fighting. Now, each tell me what your problem is."

"She's being mean about my fears," the two said in unison.

With a sigh, Harper adjusted her spectacles. "At least we're on the same page. Now, talk to each other about it.

"You're being mean about my fears!" they said, again perfectly together.

"Now, tell the other girl what you want from her." The two started to speak, but this time they were on different pages, their words overlapping and interrupting. Harper held out a hand, forcing them into silence. "Okay. Delcine first."

"I wish you'd take this more seriously," said Delcine with a frown.

Vita scowled. "I wish you could just get over yourself and your stupid, stupid fear!"

Silence fell. Harper, Mallory, and Delcine all stared at Vita. After a moment, the girl seemed to realize what she said. "That's not… not what I meant… not really…"

Delcine practically snarled, the tone not matching her quivering, shocked appearance at all. "Sure. You say that now. I'm going to go sleep in the cabin."

She was across the clearing when the fifth voice chimed in. "Awwww man! What drama! See, this is why I left Candor to seek my fortune in the first place. You never know who's gonna get insulted when you tell them how you really feel."

The four girls looked to see a woman walking out from the trees. She had skin that was dark like Delcine's and Mallory's, but somehow, it was _off,_ like the moonlight cast a purplish light upon her and nobody else. Violet dreadlocks fell past her shoulders, swinging as she walked, and her clothes consisted of a grape and white striped tank top under black overalls. Lavender high-tops adorned her feet. Despite looking more monochrome than Mallory… and Mallory was a _magical girl…_ the woman very much had a fashion sense.

"Who are you?" asked Delcine, taking a defensive step backwards. Her hands were still shaking, but it seemed like it was a fear reaction and not an anger reaction now. Across the clearing, Vita repeated the motion almost identically.

"I've had a lot of names," said the woman. "I'm no one to fear though, loves, not for you two shakin' bacons, anyway." She snapped her fingers, and Delcine and Vita fell to the ground in a fitful sort of slumber, each dropping their respective flashlights as they did so. The woman looked at her hand, obviously impressed. "Nice! When Xanthe told me Precure could put civilians to sleep, I thought I'd try it, but I never expected it to work that well."

"Xanthe?" Mallory asked. "So you're with Color War! Go away, there are Precure here, and we'll beat you!"

The woman nodded. "I was hoping you'd say that, actually."

From her spot in Mallory's bag, Myfanwy peeked her head out. Her small, beady eyes blinked, then her face turned blank with horror. "Sugarplum… it can't be…"

"Huh?" asked Mallory as she looked down at her fairy friend, as did Harper. Unfortunately, that caused them to miss their opponent's action.

The purple villainess wound the Fearful Bead up like a baseball pitcher and threw it at Delcine just as Mallory and Harper began to watch her again. The images that showed up initially surprised Mallory with their similarity to her own thoughts. The four women awake in the clearing watched Vita walk away from Delcine, the entire CIT group turning against the restless girl as she did. They saw the destruction of Camp Breezy Bridge, a group of chaotic children, scary men in the shadows, and finally, they all saw as shadows and darkness swallowed up every other image. "Fear of the dark, how quaint," commented the general.

"Don't do this, Sugarplum," Myfanwy pleaded. Harper and Mallory glanced at her, surprised that she seemed so invested in the newcomer's well-being. "You're too good for Color War, no matter what they say!"

The general's expression darkened. "It's just Plum now, Miffy. Or, as I'm sure you prefer, Myfanwy. You've followed your path of running and safety. I've chosen danger and excitement. Let that be… and this. As I see your fears… let them become!" she shouted at Delcine.

The same shadows that they'd just seen creep up from Delcine's fears now crept from her body, turning into a silhouette of a girl. Mallory thought instinctively of Peter Pan and how his shadow had left him. This seemed more or less the same, except for that with Delcine's shadow, light seemed to be sucked in. Within seconds, the stars and moon seemed to blink out, and the trees around the girls were nowhere to be seen. With some confusion, Mallory noted that all the people (even Plum and Myfanwy) seemed to glow with their own inner light that let them and only them be seen against the black backdrop.

Mallory looked beside her to Harper, who was already watching for a reaction. As though already controlled by the magic that let them sync up as Precure, the two girls nodded in unison.

* * *

 _EYECATCH 1: A brief montage of Harper moments: showing off a stylish outfit, singing songs around the campfire next to Mallory, and summoning wind as Cure Belay_

 _EYECATCH 2: Myfanwy and Hestia fly in circles, then fall down, one landing on each of Harper's shoulders. Harper looks to Myfanwy, then to Hestia, and then to the camera, giving the last one a small smile._

* * *

"Wait! Hold hands to transform together," Myfanwy suggested. "It gives you a power boost for that battle. After all, it's easier to be brave when you're with best friends."

Mallory and Harper looked at each other. "Are we best friends?" Mallory asked shyly.

Harper snorted. "Of course we are. What kind of question is that? Have you ever met a single person who could fight off an enormous spider monster without becoming BFFs with the person they fought with?"

"To be fair, I haven't met many people who fought giant spider monsters."

Harper didn't answer in words. Instead, she simply held out her hand. Mallory took it carefully, but abandoned all tepidness when Harper squeezed reassuringly. "Ready?" asked the older girl. Mallory nodded, and the two began the transformation.

"Precure! Lead me home!"

The light that surrounded them was swirled like a fancy ice cream, with both pink and purple wrapping around the girls. The choreography, too, was a perfect mix of both of theirs. Pink curls and a purple sidetail replaced normal hair at the first movement, when the girls stuck their CIT brooches over their ears. Then, it diverged. Though Mallory did not find herself lifted into the air like normal, instead relishing the feeling of the ground beneath her feet, the transformation had both girls sticking their arms out as though they were flying anyway. The pair pressed their free hands together to create a small circle and spun around until they were dizzy as their main outfits came into view.

As the light shifted into mirror-like reflectiveness just in time for Mallory to see her own eyes lighten from brown to pink, Harper's eyes became lavender. Finally, each stuck out one foot, then the other, as their hiking boots appeared.

Mallory… Cure Marshmallow… hugged herself and laughed before stretching her arms out as if to hug the monster. "Protecting the promise of hearth and home, I am Cure Marshmallow!"

Harper pointed to the sky, then to the monster, the other hand on her hip. "Protecting the promise of safety and comfort, I am Cure Belay!"

Then, more of the Precure magic that let the two girls understand exactly what to do seemed to burst into their hearts and minds. They looked at each other, nodded, and spoke in unison once again. "The starlight that shines upon these woods… we're Care Package Precure!"

Plum just looked at them. "Are you serious?" she asked, her voice lilting in such a way that meant that the question was rhetorical. "Now, Xanthe told me y'all were some legendary warriors, not two magical girl cosplayers. I 'spose you expect to defeat me with friendship and love as well, huh?"

Marshmallow blinked. "Well, yes."

"Granted, we also offer the 'magical tornado and a punch to the face,' option," Belay added with a smirk.

The grin on Plum's face was surprisingly genuine. "Well, whaddaya know? A Precure warrior after my own heart. Fine, let's see what you've got against this Humglum! If I like what you've got, next time I just might let you fight the master." She waved a hand permissively. "Go on! I won't try to stop you or cheat at all. I just wanna know what Color War is up against."

"Yeah, right!" Myfanwy said. "Color War is full of deceivers and lies! Don't even pretend. I gave you a chance, and you didn't take it!"

"What?" The happiness that the girls could see on Plum dissolved quicker than a blink. She turned to the girls, her expression full of fearful, single-minded anger. "Control your bird," she said, her voice flat. "I hail from the Candor Kingdom, whether I truly belonged there or not. My brethren of Color War may not know honor, but I do. I will never fight with deception, is that clear? That's why I like the up-front physical fights… and I'm willing to offer a temporary truce in order to watch you participate in one. Do you accept? Or don't you?"

"Don't," Myfanwy said forcefully, but Marshmallow and Belay ignored her. In unison, they nodded.

Plum's smile snapped right back into place. "Then you won't mind me evening out the score before the match officially begins, right, loves? See, we've got here two lil' Precure and one Humglum. I bet you could each take one, y'all look strong enough… so…"

"Wait!" yelled Marshmallow, but it was too late.

Plum pitched a bead at Vita, and images began to play out in the air. Vampires, werewolves, and ghosts, followed by strange sounds. Vita seemed to be terrified of all the things that her imagination conjured up when she heard a bump in the night. Plum seemed almost amused. "This one definitely has a creative streak, huh? Well, she isn't that off in the end! Monsters do exist, and she's about to become one!"

Then, as Plum was about to speak, one more thought played out… Delcine yelling and cursing at Vita, who was almost in tears. "Well, well, well. She certainly doesn't like being yelled at. Wonder which one'll manifest, the actually scary stuff, or that? Time to find out. As I see your fears, let them become!" she ordered.

Nothing happened.

No, that wasn't true. Vita began to stir from her frozen slumber. "W-what's going on?" she asked nobody in particular, right before she opened her eyes and took in the sights of the Precure, Plum, and Delcine's Humglum. The blonde girl's eyes went wide. "A-a-a monster!" she cried out, and tried to get to her feet, intent on running.

Myfanwy swooped down to block her path. "No! Don't run! You resisted the Fearful Bead _while sleeping_ , and though I don't know quite how, it means you can become Precure; you can become a superhero and save your friend! You can save Delcine!"

Vita looked upon the shadow-girl in horror. "That's…"

"'Fraid so, kiddo," Plum said with a smirk. She folded her arms over her chest. "I mean, it's no big deal, she'll be fine with a little purification, and she won't even realize what happened. To her, it'll be just like she's alone in the dark, a bad dream."

"Alone in the dark?" Vita demanded. A change seemed to come over her; she was no longer hyperfocusing on the monster. Instead, her eyes gleamed, angry on behalf of her best friend. She looked towards Myfanwy. "You said I can save her? Gimme the way to do it. I'll do whatever it takes."

Myfanwy nodded. "Take your CIT brooch, and you'll know what to do. That is," she added, "I hope you will. Cure Belay and Cure Marshmallow did, anyway."

"It's in the cabin! I'll be right back."

"I'll go with you!" the fairy offered. "Belay, Marshmallow. Cover us!"

The two Precure nodded and grinned as Vita and Myfanwy ran off. "Ready to fight, Marshmallow?" asked Cure Belay.

"Let's do this! Care Package Precure, let's go!" Cure Marshmallow fist-pumped and jumped in the air. "I'll take the high points, and you take the low."

"Sounds like a plan."

Marshmallow jumped up from the ground, letting her magic agility, strength, and anti-gravity carry her high up until the shadow girl was underneath. "Hey, scary-face, up here!" she taunted.

The Humglum looked up just as the pink Precure aimed a perfect, precise kick for the center of its face.

Then, Marshmallow went straight through it and crashed into the ground. A large crater surrounded her, and she got up dizzily. "What?"

Cure Belay had been gearing up for a kick, but managed to stop herself in time. "So much for easy hand to hand combat, huh, Plum?" she said as she glared at the villainess. "Whatever. We've got so much more than that on our side. _Blueberry Belay Solaris_!"

Magical purple wind rose up from Cure Belay's outstretched hands and whipped towards the shadow, scattering its darkness into many pieces. Belay's eyes shined in victory. However, the light faded as the shadow crept together again, slowly mending itself back into its feminine silhouette form.

"Wind doesn't work?" Belay said, looking at her own hands in horror.

Marshmallow thought. "If you have a super-cool magic attack, maybe I do too." As if on cue (and perhaps it was), three words sprung to her mind. "Oh man, I do! Marshmallow confirmed for actual magical girl and not superhero. Okay, let's try this out. _Rhubarb Marshmallow Flambé!_ "

She drew a four-pointed star in the air with her left hand, and sparkles of light sprung from it towards the Humglum. Without missing a beat, the monster dodged the attack by opening a hole through itself, closing it as the last sparkle went through.

Bouncing back to back, the Precure reconvened. "It's not going to let me attack it with light powers," said Marshmallow.

"And wind doesn't hurt it."

"What do we do now? Will a purification work this early?"

"No way. But I don't know what else to do."

"I know!" announced Vita's voice.

The girls looked up to see her at the edge of the darkness, probably having just entered what was actually the clearing. Vita gripped her CIT badge tightly, her hands over her heart in a prayer-like pose. "Precure!" she shouted, her voice echoing in the darkness. "Lead me home!"

Her inner light seemed to grow brighter than ever, surrounding her in a twist of floral and woodsy scents. The air around her tinged green as she folded in on herself, her head moving slightly as her blonde pigtails changed. As they grew fluffier and wavy, more locks growing down underneath them until the pigtails were almost an afterthought, it turned spring green.

Vita twirled around, letting the wind overtake her folded body. One by one, her limbs emerged dynamically; one arm, then the other, both sporting green wristbands, then her legs with their forest green sneakers. In her current snow angel-esque pose, it was also apparent that her clothing had become a green skirt and shirt set with the same white leotard that the other two Care Package Precure had as well. Underneath her skirt, however, was a pair of biking shorts; she'd be able to do all sorts of stunts and tricks without any problem.

Spinning around one more time, then folding both arms behind her head, Vita gave a cheeky smile. "Protecting the promise of light and beauty, I am Cure Forest!"

Not pausing to let anyone admire her new look or identity, Cure Forest continued. "Marshmallow! How long can you keep shooting that light?"

"I don't think for long," admitted the pink Cure.

Cure Forest nodded. "Okay, then plan B! Only shoot what I create, okey-doke?"

Belay blinked. "This is either going to be spectacular or a spectacular disaster."

Not seeming to hear, Forest pointed at the opposite edge of the darkness. " _Grape Forest Grill_!" she announced. Immediately, thorny green roses began to spring up. Forest moved her hands experimentally, smiling when she found the plants moved along with them. "Now, Cure Marshmallow!"

" _Rhubarb Marshmallow Flambé!_ "

The light shined over the plant, turning the flowers appropriately rosy. With a maniacal grin, Cure Forest moved the plant to become long and thin as a rope. With a fluid motion, she encircled the shadow Humglum, which yelled its name in pain… it couldn't escape the thorns of light without too much pain for it to handle.

Myfanwy's voice called from the edge of the darkness, where she perched on Forest's shoulder. "Belay! Marshmallow! This is your chance!"

The two best friends nodded and called for their weapons. "Breezy Batonette! Bright Batonette!" With a practiced point, they called out the purifying words. "Fears be banished! Courageous finale!"

"Humglum!" roared the monster as it dissipated, as did the darkness around all three Precure and Delcine's newly-freed sleeping form.

Across the clearing, now bright under the full moon and stars, Plum smirked. "Nothin' less than I expected, kiddos. Good work," she said as she vanished with a ripple.

Cure Forest seemed to take to being a magical girl well. As Marshmallow ran forward to grab Delcine's Courage Bead, she transformed back to normal. Both Marshmallow and Belay followed her lead, just in time for Delcine to stir and raise her head from the ground.

The normal teen didn't waste time with any more words. Like she had promised earlier, she stood up and began to run towards the cabin. As she did, all three Precure noted that she was crying.

* * *

"Do you know how you resisted the Fearful Bead?" Myfanwy asked after the shock of it all had somewhat worn off.

Vita shrugged, then paused. After a moment, she nodded slowly, rolling the grey and black bead with smoky designs around in her hands. "Actually… I may know. When Plum zapped me, I had a dream where I knew that Delcine was fighting a monster, and I wanted to go help her. Even if it meant facing my own fears. Even if we were fighting. She's my best friend, and I'd do anything to keep her around, so I'd definitely fight for her."

"Are you still fighting, then? Even after all of that?"

"Friend or not, she was mean to me! My fears aren't stupid! Has anyone _disproven_ the existence of vampires?"

Harper put a hand on Vita's shoulder. "This is just a thought, but have you considered maybe she thinks that you think her fears are stupid? Since she fears the dark too, but doesn't have a reason like you do?"

Vita was silent, chewing on her lip thoughtfully. "Maybe I should apologize."

"I think you probably should." Harper smiled reassuringly. "That's the best way to make sure she knows how you feel."

"But what if she hates me? What if we're not able to be friends again?"

Mallory shook her head. "I doubt that'll happen. Delcine fears losing you, just like you fear losing her. If she's mad at first, though, and isn't ready to talk about it or simply doesn't want to, you can always give her space and let her know you're ready to listen when she's ready to talk, and ready to talk when she's ready to listen."

"And all of us will be back here supporting you. The Care Package Precure take care of each other, okay?" Harper added with a reassuring smile.

Vita nodded. "Okay! Wish me luck!" she said as she ran off towards the cabin.

* * *

Mallory and Harper didn't mean to fall asleep before Vita and Delcine returned, but it somehow happened. When Mallory and Myfanwy stirred in the morning, it was to the sound of yelling, she felt horrible. _All the talk about supporting her, and then we fell asleep? It sounds like the thing went awful, too!_

Then, she heard Delcine's high, delicate laughter. "Let's not fight like that again, Vee."

"Never ever," Vita agreed with a chuckle. "I really am sorry that I was so mean to you about being afraid of the dark. Real fears are nothing to tease, and I know that."

"I already told you, it's okay! I shouldn't have made fun of yours either."

"Hug?"

"Yeah."

As Mallory pulled herself up from her sleeping bag, an already awake Harper smiled at her. "Mission accomplished," she whispered.

Mallory nodded agreement.

There were lots of monsters at Camp Breezy Bridge. The vampires that stalked Vita's imagination, the shadows that plagued Delcine, and the Humglums that Precure fought. Magic couldn't solve every problem, though, and it pleased Mallory to think that even just as a normal human she could help make people feel happy, safe, and loved. After all, she wasn't just a magical girl. She was a Counselor in Training as well.

* * *

 _ED: Summer Camp Can-Can_

* * *

Next time on Care Package Precure:

Biddy: What do you think it means to be a camp counselor?

Vita: It means being creative and excited in all you do!

Harper: Or being mature, responsible, and a good leader.

Mallory: It means dealing with problems graciously, using all the love in your heart.

?: Not that I can do any of that right…

Myfanwy: Of course you can… that and more. You can even save the world. Next time on Care Package Precure… Today! Finding the final Precure!


	5. Today: Finding the Final Precure!

_OP: Magical Story~Time_

* * *

"So, in case of an emergency here at camp, what should you do?"

Mallory tried to suppress a yawn. Beside her, Vita was already nodding off; on Mallory's other side, Harper was doodling what looked like a series of chibi Sailor Moon characters in colored pen. Taking her own pink pen to her own notebook, Mallory scrawled a quick note to her friend. _In case of an emergency, become Precure._

She nudged Harper, who looked and stifled a giggle before grabbing the pen and responding. _As much as that seems to be the overwhelming state of emergency here, I think Amelie means a fire or something, and all of us would only make_ that _worse with our powers._

Snatching the pen back, Mallory responded only with a frowning face. Despite that, she couldn't deny the truth of it.

Mallory had come to the conclusion earlier that day that the Cures all had elemental powers, or something of the like. Myfanwy had confirmed it in a whispered bathroom conversation during lunch, and so the small teen had passed the word on to her friends. Neither were surprised. Harper's magic obviously stemmed from wind and air (a cruel plot twist, considering her fears), and Vita's from nature and plants. Even the other well-known Precure, Biddy, had fire-based powers. It was Mallory herself who was the outlier, possessing the power of light. "That's not an element," she'd noted.

"Not to Earthlings, but Precure are universal! Lots of things are elements that you wouldn't expect," Myfanwy had said. "Light, void, wood, metal, cheese…"

"Cheese?"

"Don't be ethnocentric, Mallory," scolded the fairy.

In the present, Mallory pondered this. It was true that in case of a fire, the abilities of the Care Package Precure would likely only make things worse. Perhaps a real fire was a mundane disaster that could be dealt with in a mundane way, but the idea that anything could sneak past their powers was a problem. If Color War conjured up a flame-based Humglum, the group wouldn't last too long without counselor interference, something that all three CITs desperately wanted to avoid.

* * *

Dinner was immediately after their official training, so conversation was heavier. Mallory heard snippets of words and sentences as she and the others walked to the dining hall.

"Weather isn't that bad, we have weather emergencies all the time…"

"Yeah, but they're no less scary," Kendra responded with a shiver.

Towards the front of the group, another CIT shrugged. "It's the medical emergencies that worry me. Can you imagine having to deal with that?"

"An ambulance showing up at camp would freak me out," another agreed.

Some girls, Mallory noted, showed discomfort with silence. Vita, normally loud and talkative, was thoughtful. Hovering at the back of the line were Brooke and Brandy, both not saying a word. Brooke was even staring at the ground, not taking in much of went on around her. After the appraising glance, though, Mallory didn't think much of it. The idea that something could happen at camp, a safe space, was frightening, but a good meal would likely snap everyone out of the funk.

* * *

Sure enough, everyone was loud and talkative by the time that dinner ended and the girls gathered outside the cabin to make extreme s'mores in the fire circle.

Extreme s'mores had been Mallory's idea, a holdover from her days at Camp Woodwake. Though they had all the normal ingredients that went into the chocolatey treat, they went so far as to add extras. Rainbow sprinkles, different sorts of berries, caramel sauce, peanut butter, gummy worms… anything could be added as long as it was sugary enough to cause a girl to bounce off all four cabin walls.

Despite providing a long list of items for the s'mores buffet, Mallory enjoyed keeping her own s'more elegant and simple. She roasted her marshmallow to perfect golden brown glory, making sure the chocolate had melted partway before adding the chilled strawberry slices and drizzling thin rows of caramel sauce on top before adding the final graham. As she set her creation on her mess kit, she grinned. It was perfect. She might have taken a picture, if phones weren't banned at camp.

Next to her, Vita was chowing down with little regard to aesthetics, her pitch-black marshmallow almost unseen between layers of gummies and a pile of whipped cream. Harper rolled her eyes at both of them; she had kept her own creation classic and bare bones.

Mallory smiled and lifted her beautiful creation to her lips just in time for the caramel sauce to start leaking. She laughed and wiped it up with a napkin as conversation started up behind her.

"Um, Biddy? Amelie? Did you remember the gluten free graham crackers? Or, um, anything that hasn't been contaminated by gluten yet?"

Mallory could practically see Biddy smack her head, the sound invoking vivid imagery. "Oh my goodness. No. I'm so sorry, Brooke. I think there's still a safe chocolate bar somewhere."

A pause, then a small note. "I can't have dairy, either."

Mallory turned to see Biddy and Amelie exchange frantic glances. Amelie glanced around the campfire circle, her eyes scanning every food item she saw. "There's an unwrapped banana over there for now. I'm sorry, we'll write it down so we remember next time."

Brooke glanced to the banana, then to Mallory. As she saw the other girl staring, her dark face grew darker, flushed. "You know, I think I'd rather just sit out," she said lowly.

"But everyone's participating," Amelie argued.

"Everyone's eating s'mores and I can't, so please let me be. I'll sit quietly somewhere and be back when everyone's done."

"Brooke…"

"Please don't make me watch everyone do things I can't do," Brooke said, her eyes wet and pleading.

There was a beat. Then, Biddy nodded her consent.

* * *

It was the second time in a week that Mallory decided to follow an obviously upset friend.

"Brooke?" asked Mallory as she walked across the unit to the log that the girl was sitting on. Brooke was fiddling with the kinks in her hair, then abruptly changed to fiddling with a spinner ring on her finger.

"What?" she asked, not even looking at Mallory.

"I… I wanted to see if you're okay, or lonely, or anything. I guess I came to hang out!"

"Don't."

Mallory blinked in confusion. "What?"

"Just go back with everyone else, okay, Mallory? I can't have graham crackers or chocolate, and I'm not even good at talking and smiling like everything's okay when it's not." She wiped tears from her dark eyes and sniffled. "Look, I'm oversharing, and I'm not hiding my emotions, and I'm being way more autistic than I intended to."

"You shouldn't have to act okay if you're not, and anyway, Brooke, I don't want you to have to be alone! It's not fair that you don't get anything, or that anyone treats it like a bother that you've got different needs and wants."

Brooke gave a sad little smile. "You know, I changed my mind. It's okay, it really is, or it should be, anyway. I'm used to being left out of things like this. Everyone forgets that I have different needs, and I just kinda have to get over it. Like when I was in first grade, and my teacher always forgot I couldn't usually have cake on peoples' birthdays, so she'd never bring anything else for me. Then she'd feel bad and give me a pencil."

"I'm sorry," Mallory said again, putting a hand on Brooke's back, hoping to comfort the girl.

"If nothing else, I never ran out of pencils," Brook continued. "But yeah. I don't get pencils now. I mostly just get a stray banana or something. Sorry, was any of this oversharing? I told you I'm bad about that."

Mallory shook her head. "No, I wanted to hear it. Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Not really. Maybe I just wasn't cut out for this."

"What? Why?"

Brooke looked at the ground and kicked a pebble out of the way. "I'm just a burden! Everyone has to remember to get gluten free and lactose free foods for me, and sometimes I can't function well, and there are times I can't function at all! It's a very real possibility that I'll have to go to the hospital sometime in the years I come here, as a camper or as a staff, and it's a real possibility that someday I may not be able to act allistic enough for parents to want to leave their kids with me. I'm just making Breezy Bridge a bad place if I become staff, because at least as a camper, they can pull the pity card. They can't do it if I'm staff."

"Okay, one thing at a time. The medical thing- it's a possibility for everyone. Remember when we were talking about emergencies? If it might not happen, we wouldn't have the procedures," said Mallory.

"Yes, but if it happens too often, we have a problem. And maybe that problem is me."

Before Mallory had a chance to address anything else, Brooke got up and walked away. Mallory instinctively knew not to follow.

* * *

The next day dawned, and new activities were announced. To everyone but Brooke and Mallory, it seemed that the s'mores were all but forgotten. However, the conversation was still on Mallory's mind, and it seems that the other girl hadn't forgotten either. She barely looked at Mallory all day, and sat somewhere else at breakfast instead of her normal nearby spot.

"What's up with you today?" asked Harper curiously as she dissected a blueberry muffin and dunked part into her glass of milk.

Mallory didn't want to say anything. Brooke hadn't even wanted Mallory to know what was going on, it seemed, let alone Harper or anyone else, so the only person she'd mentioned anything to was Myfanwy. It looked like Brooke just wanted to be left alone. Mallory had a hard time accepting that. She'd not chased after a lot of people in her life (it was limited mostly to Harper and Brooke and a few Humglums) but every time she had, it had always turned out well, or at least better than it had been. With Brooke, it had almost made things worse.

Mallory had become quite adept at reading fears in the last few days, and Brooke seemed to harbor a classic fear of rejection. Why would someone telling her she was fine the way she was make her feel worse?

* * *

The CITs made their way to the games field after breakfast for a crash course in camp sports and games. From the sound of the group, most of the girls were familiar with all of them from years of being campers. Mallory, however, was convinced she'd be learning a lot from the things that she'd heard. Exactly what kind of game was gaga anyway?

When they got to the field, Mallory opened her backpack as she watched Brooke talk to Amelie and Biddy, then go sit at the field's edge on her own. "She's sitting out!" she whispered to Myfanwy, who was hiding in her bookbag weaving a tiny friendship bracelet, as per usual. "I can't believe this. She's so stubborn that she can't do it that she isn't even letting herself try."

"Isn't that how most people are about fears like this?" Myfanwy said, genuinely confused. "Harper was and is the exact same way about heights."

"Heights are one thing! Feeling like she's useless is a complete other." Mallory paused, then inspiration struck. "Hey, Myfanwy?"

"Yes?"

"Can you sneak into her backpack?"

Myfanwy gave Mallory the most incredulous look that a bird fairy was capable of giving. "What? Why?"

Mallory raised her hands defensively. "I just want to make sure she's okay! She needs people to tell her that everything will be fine, but she's not listening to me. Can't you like hide and tell me when she's ready to talk?"

Myfanwy stared. "For the record, I think this is a horrible idea, but you're a Precure, and so I'm pretty sure you're supposed to know what you're talking about."

"Good, cause I do! See you later!"

Sighing, the little bird wrapped her bracelet around her ankle and flew off, divebombing into Brooke's bag. The motion was not discreet; it was hard to miss a sunset patterned bird with a set of rainbow strings attached falling into a bookbag. Though Brooke didn't seem to notice the motion itself, she did notice the noise and looked at the bag to find the bird inside it.

Brooke picked Myfanwy up roughly and marched her across the field, shoving her in Mallory's face. "Why is your stuffed animal in my stuff?" she demanded.

Mallory bit her lip. "I, uh, um."

"Look, if this is another one of your tricks to get me to try to feel sorry for myself more than I already do…" She let the near-threat hang there, glaring.

Harper materialized beside Mallory and put a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, guys, what's up?"

Brooke tilted her head and glared. "Mallory will _not_ leave me alone," she said. "And now she's putting things in my bag. I don't even know what's going on with her."

"I told her you love, love, love stuffies," Harper lied smoothly. "I'm sure she was just trying to be a good friend."

"Yeah? Well it isn't working. You can take the thing back, I don't want it," she said, thrusting Myfanwy at Mallory.

"Yeah? Well, um, you need to keep her! I don't want her either!" said Mallory.

It was a good thing that Brooke had Myfanwy facing away from her; she didn't see the bird's expression shift from aggravated to _seriously offended_. After the expression change, however, she turned the bird around to examine it, and seemed to read the expression well enough. "I know," Brooke said rhetorically to Myfanwy. "I feel the exact same way, believe me. Anyway, whatever. I'll give her back when you cool your jets I guess. I'd just throw her away, but I think I'm a pretty decent person."

The implication was that she didn't feel the same about Mallory. Mallory's face grew hot, and she turned away as Brooke began to walk in the other direction.

"Are you ever going to tell me what's going on?" asked Harper.

Mallory grabbed Harper's hand. "Yeah. Right now. Let's go get Vita."

* * *

Mallory led the group down and away from the games field. When she stopped, Harper and Vita stared at her. Harper's arms were folded over her chest, and she raised a perfect eyebrow. "So remind me. Why did you take us away from the activity? I know being Precure is important, but surely it isn't so important that we have to miss a game of gaga, and while I definitely want to know what's going on, I'm sure this could wait."

Putting her hands out innocently, Mallory hushed Harper. "Okay, I don't know exactly what gaga is-"

Vita cut in, chirping, "It's kinda like dodgeball but instead of throwing the ball you-"

"-but I do think this is a really important, urgent Precure thing!" said Mallory with a glare at her friends. "See, Brooke's in a twist because she feels really down on herself, and I think she might be feeling abandoned or left out, kind of like I was! That would mean she's in danger of becoming a Humglum. So my plan is to make her feel less fearful about her life!"

"Forgive me if I say that's a horrible idea, but that's a horrible idea," said Harper. "Mallory, Brooke's got a lot of pride, even if she's easily hurt. Having someone pity her is her worst nightmare."

Vita nodded. "Yeah. She's small and sweet, but I once saw her almost destroy a girl in CIT when we were kids because the CIT was being demeaning to her. Come to think of it, I think that particular CIT never returned to be staff."

"I'm not pitying her, we're not pitying her, we're building her up," replied Mallory importantly. "Come on, the best that can happen is we can get her safe. The worst is she becomes a Humglum, we purify her, and all is well anyway because she takes the courage we purify her with."

"I just don't think it's a good idea," said Harper.

"Yeah, I don't know either," said Vita.

"Trouble in paradise, girls?" croaked an elderly voice that didn't belong at a summer camp one bit. The girls looked up, each immediately knowing what to expect and preparing to fight. Mallory took her brooch from her collar, Vita pulled it from her pocket, and Harper unclasped it from her hair. The brooches began to grow warm in their hands, begging for a chance to be used, but there were the formalities of meeting a new Color War general to go through first.

It was odd, seeing a seemingly helpless old lady with the marks of Color War, but there she was. Her eyes were bright green, as were the highlights in her greying hair. Even her tacky muumuu was green, as was the Overwatch shirt she wore overtop of it. Neon knitting needles poked out of a mint-colored craft bag. "Hello, dearies," said the woman. "Come to volunteer as Humglums? A good way to forget all the horrid troubles caused by kids these days. Perhaps not as good as a video game for losing yourself and your sense of time, but definitely up there."

"Nah, man, we're here to kick your butt and send you back to Color War loserville where you came from!" shouted Vita. Mallory and Harper rolled their eyes at the dumb taunt, but both of them mentally admitted that Vita's natural tendency towards the magical girl life was endearing.

Perhaps endearing enough to join in. Harper waved a hand dismissively. "We've all had enough of baby boomers toying with our economy… and our hearts and fears."

"T-that's so intense, Harper…" Mallory stammered.

"Oh, sorry. Want to try?"

Mallory nodded. "I'll keep it simple. Care Package Precure! It's time to show this lady what we're made of!"

The other two nodded, and Mallory, Harper, and Vita linked hands with determined smiles on their faces. Given their cue, they shouted in perfect unison. "Precure! Lead me home!"

The pink light had sparkles of green and purple floating in it. On closer inspection, they were little stars and hearts, almost tangible, but not quite. As three heads of hair transformed in color and shape, Mallory examined the objects. Before she could think into them anymore, the magic moved forward. Three leotards appeared… then three skirts, three shirts, three sets of shoes. Tiny variant details emerged; Vita got her biking shorts, Mallory's kerchief became more elaborate than the other two, and Harper's glasses vanished.

They posed, each in their almost-trademark way, and announced themselves.

"Protecting the promise of hearth and home, I am Cure Marshmallow!"

"Protecting the promise of safety and comfort, I am Cure Belay!"

"Protecting the promise of light and beauty, I am Cure Forest!"

On instinct, Belay and Forest smashed into Marshmallow on either side, one arm over her, the other extended, almost as though they were offering any who wanted into a giant group hug. Then, they pulled away, twirling as they did so, and posed again, arms out dramatically. "The starlight that shines upon these woods… we're Care Package Precure!"

* * *

 _EYECATCH 1: A brief montage of Vita moments: snuggling up to Delcine, performing karaoke badly, eating pancakes, and doing a high kick as Cure Forest._

 _EYECATCH 2: Myfanwy and Hestia fly in circles, then fall down. They land on a grassy patch, where Vita has set up a picnic that is only full of sweets._

* * *

The old lady clapped approvingly. "Oh, dearies, what a good show! My dear fire beast and I will have such fun with you."

"Fire beast?" asked Cure Forest with a confused frown.

The woman nodded. "I, Verte of Color War, always take the liberty of finding a nice young child to turn into a Humglum to help me get around. These old legs just aren't what they used to be, don't 'cha know? Now, come on out, Humglum!"

The beast crashed its way through the trees, and Marshmallow was only slightly surprised to see that it was a fire monster. "I jinxed it," she murmured in Spanish, mad at herself, before she switched back to English. "Guys! I know we talked about how we wouldn't be able to defeat a fire monster, and I've got a plan now."

"What's that?" asked Belay.

"Let's run and get Biddy!"

There was no argument, no talk of staying and fighting the good fight. Belay raced off, wind hastening her escape and swirling around her. Marshmallow and Forest took the easier way, jumping so far off the ground that it was almost like flying.

Then, the green Cure was plucked from the air without fanfare. "Cure Forest!" Marshmallow screamed before she, too, was grabbed by a lick of flame that was almost tentacle-like in nature. It squeezed her, constricting her arms so she couldn't escape. After a moment of flailing, she looked around to find her friends in similar positions.

"Let us go!" insisted Forest as she struggled. The bonds only seemed to get tighter.

"Let's go looking for a good Humglum to destroy the world with," Verte said easily, ignoring the cries of her prisoners. "I have a bet going with Cobalt. The maker of the monster that lasts longest has to pay for the next video game we want."

The flame beast squeezed the three Precure tightly as it began to make its way through the forest, lighting trees on fire as it passed. "Forest!" shouted Belay. "Can you make those trees not burn?"

"What am I supposed to do? Tell them to stop, drop, and roll?" Forest shot back. "I'm a legendary warrior, not a miracle worker."

Belay nodded. "Sorry, I just thought that since _we're_ not burning, it'd be in the realm of possibility."

Verte cackled, finally acknowledging the group. "You're not burning because to Infinite Rose, you're better off alive than dead."

"Infinite Rose?"

However, the Color War general had turned her attention onto the group of CITs standing in the games field, frozen. Amelie and Biddy were nowhere to be found, and Mallory frowned. She should have expected that they'd be off on their own, doing another Precure thing. She should have realized she couldn't get help from them.

Verte cackled. "So, here's the little sleeping trick that Xanthe and Plum mentioned. It seems like a copout, at least for the one with the honor of becoming a Humglum. Let's just find someone who looks like they have some good fears, and… ah, there's one! Separated from the group and everything, all ready to be taken by the Fearful Bead."

Verte was looking right at Brooke. Marshmallow almost saw red. "Don't you dare!" she shouted. "Brooke already has enough to worry about! She's not even that fearful, she's just sad, and if you exploit that, you're worse than anyone!"

"Just sad?" Verte sounded almost amused, her sweet old lady voice lilting up. "What is sadness but fear of what has happened, or what might happen soon? I see into this young girl's heart enough to know… let me show you what I've found. First of all, unfreeze, victim!"

Immediately, Brooke blinked. "Wha?"

With a soft smile, the matronly villainess announced her next action. "Now, with this Fearful Bead I hold, let me show you exactly what sadness is!"

She wound it up and pitched it at Brooke, hitting her right in the shoulder. Brooke winced, first from the pain, then from the images. Everyone awake and aware watched ambulances with sirens blaring, people glaring at a crying Brooke, and an image of Brooke alone, sniffling as she packed her bags. They watched a smug barista give her a deliberately wrong drink, a dining room table mix-up, and a doctor shaking her head gravely.

She had more fears than any of the others that Marshmallow had watched get targeted… or did she? They all stemmed from the same thing, her medical restrictions, and all boiled down to the same thing as well. Brooke wanted to be healthy, and more so, she wanted to not do it at the expense of her happiness. She wanted a world where she could be herself in all that meant. She wanted a world where she could be an autistic kid with seizures and celiac and _a life where she felt confident doing so, no matter what other people thought._

Marshmallow wanted to give her that world. "Don't be scared!" she yelled. "We're here for you, and we won't leave no matter what happens! You aren't an inconvenience! You're worth so much, Brooke, and we know that!"

Belay and Forest's eyes rolled as they saw what their friend was trying to do, but they followed along after a death glance from Marshmallow. "Yeah!" Forest called. "We're your friends! We're a team, okay? Friends and teams don't laugh at each other or write off each other's problems!"

"Huh?" Brooke asked, her eyes wet. She was still staring at the doctor's image.

"If you can be brave for us, you'll never have to worry about being alone or not being able to take care of yourself. If you can be brave, you can be a Precure, and we take care of each other," said Belay.

Brooke wiped her eyes. "But…"

"No, don't think about the buts," Marshmallow said as she shook her head. "We promise, and we always keep our promises."

"No, but that's not what I want! I don't wanna be brave for others! I want to be brave for myself, because I know I can do things! I don't care if I get teased. Well, not much anyway. I just… I can't forgive this body or brain if it holds me back! I won't let it!"

Mallory froze. No wonder Brooke had been so angry. She'd been going about her "helping" in all the wrong ways.

"Wait," Brooke said. "Mallory? And… Vita? Harper?"

Cure Belay gave a sassy grin. "How about this. If we get out of this mess, we'll let you in on our secret identities, okay? You have to help out, though."

Brooke's eyes narrowed. "I should have known. I should have known this would happen."

Verte scoffed. "Are you done with your pathetic attempts at saving this youngling? With that many fears, nobody can be brave for very long. As I see your fears, let them become!"

The bead glowed briefly, then fizzled out. Everyone stared at it, except for Brooke. She looked deeply at Verte, her brown eyes not wavering. "I don't need to be brave, not if I don't think my fears will ever really happen. There's nothing for you to latch onto if I choose to let go and do everything I can to make my best possible life."

From her bag, something moved, and Brooke turned to find herself face to face with Myfanwy. There was no shock at meeting the bird she thought was a toy, only acceptance. "I _really_ should have known," she murmured. "I thought I saw you change your expression, and… were you talking earlier?"

"Yes. You know a lot, you notice a lot more than people give you credit for, and that's a good thing. However, there's more you know, though, Brooke," said the fairy, plopping the girl's CIT brooch into her hands. "Say the words stuck in your head."

"And then… I can defend myself. I can prove my own worth, and nobody will need to reassure me."

"You're worth it no matter what."

Brooke nodded. "Alright then. Let me prove it, to myself and to anyone who would oppose me! Precure! Lead me home!"

Brooke jabbed her CIT pin in her hair and blushed, covering her face to hide the rosiness. As she did, her hair fashioned itself into a ponytail, with two elaborate braids looping in a way reminiscent of Momoko from Ojamajo Doremi (or, that's what Harper would have said, had anyone asked). All at once, the brown and blonde kinks turned to golden yellow, just as she put her hands down.

She hugged herself as her leotard and shirt appeared, then put both hands on her hips to summon the matching yellow skirt. A brush of her hands allowed pristine white gloves, and taps of each toe allowed for hiking boots. As the light turned reflective, Brooke grinned and admired her new look just as her eyes took on the same color as everything else.

Finally, she posed, hands sweeping up to touch the sky. "Protecting the promise of family and friendship, I am Cure Cocoa!"

Marshmallow could practically feel the stars in her eyes. "Omigosh! Cure Cocoa! I knew you could do it!" Still, she had been listening, and she thought she understood. It wasn't about what she thought Brooke or Cure Cocoa could do. It was all about what she thought she could do, and what she was willing to prove to herself and the world.

"Cure Cocoa," scoffed Verte. "The audacity to name yourself after something you can't even have."

"I can have cocoa, just not milk chocolate." Her golden eyes gleamed as she smiled. "Besides, don't you have better things to worry about?"

"Like what?"

"Like dealing with four Precure warriors at once." Before Verte could respond, Cocoa's eyes glimmered and her spell was cast. " _Banana Cocoa Boil_!"

Tendrils of crystal blue water arose from Cure Cocoa's hands and knocked into the fire beast's own limbs. "Humglum!" it howled in pain as the binds keeping the other Precure imprisoned got severed, then fizzled out. Marshmallow, Belay, and Forest dropped to the ground with triplet grins. Cure Cocoa wore the smirk of a victor.

Verte did not look pleased. "So, those whippersnappers who've battled you before were correct. For millennials, you Precure are quite formidable."

"Bet your butt we are," Cure Forest taunted as she made a fist, then cast her own attack at the old woman. " _Grape Forest Grill!"_

As thorny vines began to grow around her, Verte snapped her fingers and disappeared. Cure Marshmallow frowned. "Girls, that's one problem down! Now to take care of the other!"

"One little issue!" yelled Cure Belay as she jumped away from the Humglum.

"What's that?"

"Without Verte here, there's nobody to tell the monster not to burn us!"

Sure enough, now that she was paying attention to it, Marshmallow could feel the heat from where she was standing. It felt like the beginnings of a sunburn, like warmth that settled uncomfortably into her skin. It was starting to _hurt._ "What do we do?" said Marshmallow, concern in her voice.

"I've got this!" said Cure Cocoa. "If it worked on its arms, it'll work on the rest of it, right? _Banana Cocoa Boil!_ "

Forest fistpumped. "Built in firefighter. Nice!"

"Now," said Cocoa. "Belay! Contain it as best as you can."

"You got it. _Blueberry Belay Solaris!_ "

"Forest! Marshmallow! Take the purification!" yelled Cure Cocoa as she continued to spray it with water. Across from her, Cure Belay used her wind to keep the flame monster trapped.

Marshmallow reached out and took Forest's hand. "Bright Baton!" she yelled.

"Bluebell Baton!"

They twirled their weapons around before pointing them at the Humglum. "Fears be banished! Courageous Finale!"

"Humglum!" roared the monster as it disintegrated. Cure Forest spun her baton victoriously before it, too, vanished, and Marshmallow's did the same soon after.

"I'm so proud of you!" Marshmallow said to Cure Cocoa. "Or, uh, I mean. You did really well! And. Um. I'm really sorry. I wasn't trying to pity you, and I wasn't trying to be that kind of savior, or to talk over your experiences. I thought I knew what you needed based on my own situation, and I didn't, and I shouldn't have done what I did. I won't do it anymore, or I'll try my best not to and listen if you say I'm wrong."

Cure Cocoa glared at Marshmallow, but then her face lightened. "Well, that's about as good as I can ask for. Sorry for snapping at you, even if you did deserve it a little. Friends?"

Marshmallow's eyes lightened up happily. "Friends!"

Then, the group of four girls looked to where the Humglum once stood. Two things remained there now… a firey-colored bead and a young woman with dark red hair and a silver brooch on her collar.

"Oh no," said Marshmallow, looking at a slowly stirring Biddy.

"Should we get out of here?" asked Cure Belay anxiously.

Marshmallow began to nod, but it was too late. Biddy opened her eyes to take in four Precure warriors standing over her. She looked from Marshmallow to Belay to Forest to Cocoa. Then, she sighed before taking a deep breath.

That didn't stop any upset she might have had. "What in the name of all things good did I tell you about being a magical girl, Mallory Marsh!?" she yelled.

* * *

The five Precure warriors sat at a picnic table outside the cabins. The rest of the CITs were in another area of camp; Biddy hadn't told Amelie what happened, but had impressed that she needed to talk to Mallory, Harper, Vita, and Brooke alone. The other staff member had obliged.

Biddy was shaking her head in dismay. "So not only did you disobey me, you dragged three more girls with you?"

Mallory bit her lip. "Technically, I never did do anything wrong. You said transform in an emergency, and then you said yell if I needed help. Well, I transformed in emergencies, and we all did an awful lot of yelling."

"What about the others?"

"If I may," Harper said. Biddy nodded. "I watched Mallory transform, and both of us knew that it'd be risky if I stayed a normal girl after that, so I got drawn into it. Similarly, Vita and Brooke were both targeted to become Humglums. Only by standing up against their fears could they defend against it, and so oops, they became Precure too. It wasn't intentional, more of circumstantial, and we all took care of each other."

"Regardless, I have to ask you to give up your CIT pins," Biddy said, and perhaps they imagined the cold tone to her voice, because her eyes were sympathetic.

"What?" demanded Vita. "But we saved you! We were the ones who de-Humglum-ified you! You'd still be a rampaging fire beast if not for us."

"And I appreciate that. Really, I do. However, what if something happened to you? I can't explain this magic to your parents, and I can't really tell my supervisors that I even let you be Precure in the first place! No, there's no way you can do it risk-free, so I'm going to take away your ability to do it at all."

"But they're our CIT pins!" said Brooke.

Biddy held firm, hand out, waiting. "You'll get new ones, and they'll still identify who you are, just without the risk. Now, please, before I have to take drastic measures."

The girls looked to each other, silently communicating what they all knew. Precure wasn't just about the power or the risk. It wasn't even about saving others, as good as that was. No, it was something special.

Brooke had found out that she was worthy no matter what she or anyone else thought. Vita had learned the value of others' beliefs and the legitimacy of their own fears and worries. Harper had found the courage to stand up… and even climb up… to face her enemies. Mallory had found friends in a brand new place.

Mallory shook her head, knowing the rest of the group would stand behind her. "No! We won't give this up! We can't give this up! This is what we're supposed to be, I know it, and… and…"

"And you're going to have to fight us if you want us to stop!" Vita added forcefully.

Harper nodded, and Mallory's eyes widened. Brooke looked scared out of her wits.

Biddy, however, only snorted. Then, out of thin air, her red hair turned firey and bright. Her tee shirt and denim shirt was swallowed in magic and flames, becoming her battle uniform quicker than Mallory could speak. As she cracked her neck, her bracelets and red sneakers appeared.

"Well then," said Cure Campfire as the girls looked on in awe, "if you insist."

* * *

 _ED: Summer Camp Can-Can_

* * *

 _Next time on Care Package Precure:_

Mallory: This isn't how it's supposed to be! We're not meant to fight other Precure!

Harper: But if our magic depends on it...

Vita: We'll fight until the end...

Brooke: And we'll win every time!

Biddy: Not when you go against a real veteran Cure with a real reason to fight! It's my job to protect all of you, whether you want it or not!

Myfanwy: Next time on Care Package Precure: Wisdom! Biddy's Origin Story!

Care Package Precure: We'll conquer your fears all together now!


	6. Wisdom: Biddy's Origin Story

_OP: Magical Story~Time_

* * *

Bridget Hadyn was nine years old, and she loved arts and crafts.

During free time at Camp Breezy Bridge, she would have one of her counselors walk her down to the art building, where she would spend the hour constructing wondrous sculptures, sewing costumes, and painting pictures. Of course, it'd be time to go all too soon, but she was almost always able to come at least a little bit out of the day, and often her friends would tag along too, which made it even better.

Today, most of the girls from her cabin had tagged along, and there was a friendly buzz to the room as the third and fourth graders laughed and worked. Bridget could smell cookies baking in the kitchen attached to the room, and from the heat, she guessed that the kiln was at full blast as well. Maybe it wasn't too late to put a ceramic project in! She went over to her counselor, Amarantha, to ask about that.

Amarantha was like a big sister. She wasn't horribly older than the group; they were all eight, nine, ten, maybe eleven, and she was eighteen. She liked to hear about their favorite television shows even though all of them were for kids. Amarantha gave nicknames out like a candyman gave lollipops, and smiles and encouragement came even more reliably.

Bridget ran up to her and looked into her idol's russet-brown eyes with a soft smile. "Ames!" she said.

"Yes, Biddy?" asked Amarantha, running a hand through the deep red hair that was much darker than Bridget's own.

"Can I use the clay?"

"Yes, but I don't think we'll be able to put it in until next time. You know where it is?"

"Yeah!"

"Alright," laughed the counselor. "Go ahead."

It must have been fate. There was no other way it could have happened. As Bridget crossed the room and stood on tiptoes, trying to reach the clay, she was able to see right into the kitchen as it exploded.

* * *

A counselor was a friend, an idol, and someone that had to play the part of the mature big sister to perfection. Most girls learned that when they started going to camp as a summer job and not a summer vacation. Biddy Hadyn, however, had learned that when she was eight years old and the arts and crafts building began to burn before her eyes.

She'd learned two more things then as well, things that even counselors don't often consider.

The first thing she learned was that, above all, a counselor was responsible for the safety of her campers, even at risk to herself. Even when it meant facing her deepest fear, and even if facing her fears wasn't something she was good at. Even if it meant that to protect the safety of her campers, she had to become an enemy herself.

The four CITs that called themselves Care Package Precure transformed together, hands linked tightly as they shouted the activating words: "Precure! Lead me home!" As they changed, Biddy, or Cure Campfire, thought of her own transformation, which had happened suddenly and without even so much as wishing for it. Bursts of emotion could do that, she knew, and thinking of the safety of her campers could definitely do it. She wouldn't have any of them go through what she had been through. She'd become a counselor, become a Precure, specifically to prevent it.

A good staff member was trained on prevention, on never needing to use damage control. That was what Biddy believed in. Damage control _hurt_. Even the thought of having to find some way to explain the injured bodies of four CITs pinched her heart and caught in her throat. There was no way to explain it, no way parents would accept, no way Biddy could. If she couldn't get these girls safe, she didn't deserve to have survived that fire.

She didn't want to fail herself. Even more so, she didn't want to fail Amarantha.

* * *

Everyone panicked. Everyone except Bridget, frozen in shock. She stood there and watched the front door get swallowed by flames as everyone screamed behind her. From the distant rattling she heard, she could tell the back door wasn't unlocking.

One by one, bit by bit, the noise subsided, as smoke began to fill her friends' lungs. Only then did Bridget begin to panic. Nine years old… that was too young to die! She turned to find Amarantha, hoping desperately that the counselor was still breathing, that she had some plan. Around her, the flames loomed, waiting to swallow her up.

Then, just when the light couldn't get any brighter, it did.

A burst of silver starlight swallowed Amarantha. As miniature stars and moons swirled around her, the sundress and leggings the counselor wore seemed to melt and reform as a sleeveless top and basic skirt, both in silver. Her midriff was bare, but her arms were covered with long gloves that has silver accents around the wrists like bracelets. Around her neck was a bow-like translucent kerchief that was held in place not by the clover shaped staff pin, but by a star. Lacy silver socks went up to her knees, and black sneakers protected her feet.

The stars and moons became reflective, showing off Amarantha's new outfit from every angle. Her red-brown hair and eyes had become crystalline, rainbows dancing across them. She smiled right at Bridget, curtsied, and opened her mouth.

"The legendary warrior who hails from the constellations, I am Cure Stargazer!"

Bridget stared.

Amarantha… no, Cure Stargazer smiled. "Now, you could be using this time to find a way out, but instead you're watching me. It's alright, I suppose, but don't go telling the camp director that I let you see this, okay? Anyway, Biddy, I need you to get behind me. I'll make sure you and the others are safe and sound, but you have to do everything I say, okay?"

Bridget nodded. "Okay," Cure Stargazer said, more to herself than anyone. She turned towards the fire, which had been meekly not moving forward, as though it knew what was coming. " _Precure_ _Everlasting Lightspeed Flare!"_ Thousands and thousands of tiny silver stars showered upon the fire, pushing it back, giving a clear pathway to the front door. "Run, Biddy!" said Cure Stargazer. "I've got to get the others out by carrying them, since they're not conscious. Go before I have to do the same to you!"

Bridget bit her lip and began to run, but a gut feeling told her to look back at Cure Stargazer. The flames were closing in again. "Amarantha…"

"Go! Get out of here, and then run for help, okay?"

A nod, then Bridget looked forward and raced for the door.

* * *

Kick, punch, _Raspberry Campfire Roast!_

If the campers got a little bruised in her attempt to stop them, it was better than if they wound up dead, right?

Cure Campfire was fighting on autopilot and she knew it. It was almost a blessing. Her body moved fluidly as she deflected the four friends who tried to force her to give up on what she believed in.

It was made more complex by the fact that nobody was aiming to hurt anyone. A deliberate miss, a gentle push… this was the kind of fight that actors had on stage, that the mother figure in Campfire's favorite video game put on. This was the fight of those who only wanted the other party to see what they saw, how they saw it.

The group didn't seem to have a strategy at first, but Cure Cocoa took the role quickly, shouting orders that helped Campfire evade them. It took them minutes to manage to surround her, and even then it was a weak barrier; Campfire solved it easily by jumping up.

Not everything was as easily escaped as a group of teenage girls, however. Her thoughts followed her into the bright blue sky.

* * *

Bridget found two counselors on break, but despite not being on duty, they leaped into action. One raced for the dining hall and the nearest telephone; the other whisked Bridget away to the nurse, who hemmed and hawed but couldn't find any lasting damage. "You certainly smell smoky, and I'm sure you're terrified and exhausted, so we'll get you some rest."

Bridget wasn't having it. "I have to make sure everyone's okay! Amarantha's still in there, she's trying to get my friends… it's so bad! It's a big fire, nurse!"

"Sleep. Everyone will be okay, I promise. Staff members here can handle themselves; we've got many little tricks up our sleeves," said the nurse. She slid her sleeve back to reveal a homemade bracelet with hand painted beads depicting storms, ghosts, bears, and more. Tapping twice on one that showed the night sky, she smiled. Stars twinkled in the room like magic, which they must have been made of.

"Are you a Precure too?" Bridget asked, eyes wide.

The nurse winked and grinned, but shook her head. "Now, now, campers aren't supposed to know about that. Don't worry what I am or aren't, just relax and sleep."

Comforted, the stars twinkling above her, Bridget complied.

* * *

It was a flood of emotions, but it burned like fire, consuming all her rationality.

She hovered for a while, taking in the ground. Heights had never scared her. So many things did, but she could relax and enjoy the view like this. She could take a breath and think about the thoughts that took over her mind. It was easier, when she thought of good things. The nurse (oh, how she wished she'd learned the nurse's name) was so sweet to her, and the stars had been so pretty.

For a moment, Biddy pretended that this was the end, that everyone was okay. She pretended this was the end of the story, that Amarantha and all her friends would come in laughing and joking, talking about how they all had such a big adventure.

Then again, that was not how it happened. Those pointless what-if filled thoughts, they were the reason Campfire rarely considered the fine details of that day.

After all, if she thought of the good, the bad would come to haunt her all the quicker, she noted to herself as she hit the climax of her jump and began to fall.

* * *

 _EYECATCH 1: A brief montage of Brooke moments: sewing patches onto a backpack, having a tea party with the other Care Package Precure, tying elaborate knots, and finally, playing peek-a-boo as Cure Cocoa._

 _EYECATCH 2: Myfanwy and Hestia fly in circles, then fall onto a comfortable bed, where they are surrounded by a mountain of plush toys. It's a smiling Brooke who rescues them._

* * *

Bridget woke groggily to sunlight streaming in from a nearby window. She took a moment to appreciate the softness of the bed that she was in, nothing like the bunk bed cots of her cabin, and then looked around. The nurse was sitting across from her in a chair, talking to another staff member standing beside her. Elegant and unruffled, she didn't look like she belonged at a camp. As the nurse saw Bridget stirring, she explained why. "Bridget, this is Miriam, the camp director."

Sitting up, Bridget smiled shyly and said "Hi."

Miriam didn't smile back. She stared at Bridget for a moment, then sighed. "So, you know what happened?"

Just as Bridget opened her mouth to ask about Precure, the nurse shook her head discreetly, and raised a finger to her lips before saying, "The fire last night, Bridget."

Bridget nodded. "Uh-huh. The kitchen, or the kiln, or something… it blew up?"

"Yes, that's correct, as far as we can tell." Miriam peered at her with an unreadable expression. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah. Cu- um, Amarantha got me out."

Miriam nodded slowly. "She managed to rescue every single camper. Some are also here in the infirmary; many had to go to the hospital because of all the smoke and a few burns. However, every camper got out alright. All your friends are alive and will be okay, and I thought you would want to know."

"But what about Amarantha?"

Miriam faltered. "You should rest."

"I just finished resting!" protested Bridget.

The nurse frowned. "She should know. You don't have to tell her everything, but tell the poor girl something. This was the woman who rescued her."

With a nod and a sigh, Miriam began to speak once again. "Amarantha's actions were heroic, and I'm sure that she's aware of that. However, she's no longer with us. She couldn't handle the smoke and the stress, and it's understandable. We took her to the hospital, and she told us to tell everyone back at camp she was sorry, right before she was released…"

Bridget felt her entire being go numb. She blinked. Miriam was trying to skirt around it, that was obvious, but there was only one thing that could have happened to her favorite counselor. "C-couldn't you have done something more?" she asked as the first tears began to roll. "She didn't have to go…"

Miriam shook her head. "We tried everything we could to keep her here. She's our hero, and we've always loved her, since she was a camper here herself. However, we couldn't do anything. She's gone."

Bridget's face was soaked by the time she was able to murmur, "I wish I could have said goodbye. And thank you."

It was the nurse who came over and rubbed Bridget's back reassuringly, in smooth, circular motions. "I'm sure she knows. Wherever she is now, I'm sure she knows."

How could she know anything? She was dead.

Dead, dead, dead, and never coming back. Amarantha was a hero, they said, and she rescued everyone, just not herself.

* * *

She rarely thought about those little details of those fateful twenty-four hours. After all, it wasn't something she wanted to think about at all, and the thoughts that came anyway to haunt her were the worst moments of it. She remembered the moment she knew her idol was gone forever; she didn't often remember the nurse with her constellations and calm, warm smile.

Were those beads Courage Beads? Were they good for something else besides just being an extra power boost?

Cure Campfire had two beads. One was a night sky so very similar to the one she'd remembered, and the other was her own bead of flames and fire. As she began to fall, her lowered gravity allowing her to go so slowly she almost hovered, she double tapped the first bead.

Stars lit up the sky even through the daylight.

She was trained well. The first thing that came to her mind was _how can I use these in battle?_ The second was _I want to touch these stars and not worry about how they'll burn._

Extending her hand, she tried to catch one of the tiny celestial spheres, but as she felt the warmth approach her hand, she pulled back and closed her eyes in shame.

 _Why can't I just get over this? It was years ago, and I… I faced my fear already. Why isn't it gone? Why can't I just act brave?_

There wasn't an answer, only more memories, spurred on by those spinning stars around her. Cure Campfire curled into herself as she fell, quicker and quicker, letting the thoughts wash over her. Those thoughts, those memories, Campfire herself… they were just waiting for her to crash and burn.

* * *

The athletic woman looked sternly at the sixty plus young women on Camp Breezy Bridge's staff. She looked completely intimidating; her buzz cut hid under a baseball cap, she wore shirts from the men's department, and had bruises and scratches aplenty. Though it was standard camp staff fashion, Biddy had grown up with a chic and fashionable director who sat prettily behind a desk. This woman, brand new to the camp for this season (though rumors said she'd been a camper as a teenager), was not what Biddy was used to.

"I'd like to introduce the new camp director," said the assistant director, a returner. "This is Director Eric."

"Please, _just_ call me Eric," she corrected. Then, she squinted at the group appraisingly. "But enough about me, we're here for another reason. Who here is first year staff?"

Biddy raised her hand, as did about eleven or twelve other women.

"What you don't know is that being staff at this camp doesn't just mean watching them. Here, we protect them, the future of our Earth. Literally."

Around Biddy, light began to shine, and within a minute, fifty Precure warriors stood around her. She scanned the crowd, looking for a silver outfit, a stellar theme, anything that would give Amarantha away. There was nothing; the closest she could find was an adventure staff member in a golden dress, with tiny sun tattoos running up her arms. She bit her lip in an expected disappointment. Amarantha was dead. That had been the case for years, and it wasn't changing. Still, magic existed, and she'd harbored a hope that maybe her old counselor would jump out of a box, yelling "Surprise! I'm alive, and now that you're an adult, we can be friends!"

That stuff didn't happen, even in magical fairy tales. Dead meant dead.

* * *

She felt hands on her wrists, and support on her back. "We've got you!" cheered a high, squeaky voice. "We've won!"

"I wouldn't call this winning," said a lower, calmer voice. It was farther away, perhaps not touching her, maybe still on the ground. "She's crying. I think we've upset her."

"Maybe if we're nice, she'll tell us why?" said another voice, soft, sweet, and kind.

Cure Campfire shook her head violently. "Or maybe not," said the last girl. "Hey, we're about to land, so watch out, everyone!"

A small bump, then solidity. The Care Package Precure set Cure Campfire safely on the ground. Politely, they gave her a chance to open and wipe her eyes, not saying anything about her tearstained face.

"You can talk to us, you know," said Cure Marshmallow after a moment. "I think… I think there's a reason that you don't want us to do this, and if you told us why, it might convince us better than just trying to force us to stop, y'know."

"We're good listeners," said Forest with a grin, and even through the tears, Campfire almost laughed at the idea of Vita Odhran being a good listener.

Behind her, Cure Belay and Cure Cocoa nodded supportively, though, and the idea of being honest with these girls appealed to her. They wouldn't take her word for what it meant to be Precure, but perhaps if she told them what came with magic, maybe then they'd understand.

She wiped her eyes one more time, looked up to them, and told her story.

* * *

First year staff had a seminar that was officially called "Orientation," and unofficially called "Forcing Your Transformation 101."

They knew now why one of their interview questions had been "what is your greatest fear." Eric put them through more trials than Biddy thought she would, with the help of a few returners in their magical forms.

Eric didn't transform. When Biddy discreetly asked someone why, they repeated the rumor that Eric was so unfettered by bad thoughts that she didn't have any fears to face. Without fears, it was impossible to become a Precure, so she was stuck as their guide.

After night hikes through the woods, staged medical emergencies, an encounter with a flock of crows, impossible math homework, and a simple bout where everyone laughed at one girl, it was time for Biddy's fears to be revealed. Out in an open, grassy area, Eric and the new Precure watched Biddy intensely.

Eric didn't look Biddy in the eye, and Biddy was sure she knew why. There had been a local magazine article only the week before about the "Breezy Bridge Camp Fire" and all of its survivors. Biddy had dutifully said her lines about being grateful for living, how much she loved the camp even after it almost took her life, and how she was returning to be staff for her first year. Eric would have read that; it would have been something she'd have to do as camp director.

Other fears, they were irrational, never fully faced, never fully realized. Biddy's sprung from a scary reality.

"You go by Biddy, not Bridget," said Eric, her voice sure but an eyebrow raising inquisitively. Biddy nodded. There was a reluctant, uncomfortable, and almost expectant pause before the camp director spoke once more.

"Yeah?"

However, Eric didn't say any more on the subject. Instead, she handed Biddy a match. "Can you light a fire?"

Biddy nodded. Fire wasn't so bad if she was confident she could control it.

Maybe they saw that, because Eric didn't release the match when Biddy began to take it. Instead, she snatched it back, lit it, and threw it onto the ground. Almost immediately, the field began to burn.

It didn't take smoke for Biddy's throat to close up, making it hard to breathe. _It's come back for me,_ she thought, panicked. _This time, the Precure won't do anything about it. This time, they're going to watch me burn._

She tried to get her legs to move, but they wouldn't. She tried to speak, and she couldn't. She only could stand, choking on feelings, and watch the fire consume the clearing where her new friends (perhaps enemies, as they weren't helping one bit) stood.

"You have to do something, Biddy," said Eric quietly. "It has to be you. What would a counselor do when faced with this?"

It felt almost like a personal attack. Eric's thoughts couldn't have been clearer if she had flat out said "You're nothing like Amarantha and couldn't do what she did."

Though it was true, and oh, was Biddy sure of it, she couldn't bear the insult. The only question was what exactly she was supposed to do with the fire in order to truly face it? Stand there and let it consume her? Try to put it out?

"I'm afraid," she said.

"I know," said Eric, and perhaps the softness, the sweetness so like Amarantha's, perhaps that was all imagined.

"I don't know what to do."

"Save what you can, and know you did your best."

Biddy laughed. One's best was rarely good enough. She'd known that for years. "Well then, I have to inform you that you all should be running right now. I might be able to drag a camper out a fire, but fifteen grown women? Not so much."

In retrospect, Biddy would realize it was the small shred of humor that let her light shine through. It was her ability to forget her fear, if only for a second, that allowed her Precure level bravery.

* * *

There was silence for a moment, then Cure Campfire found herself pulled into a group hug. "I'm sorry," whispered Cocoa.

"Nobody should have to go through that," said Belay.

"Especially not a child," Marshmallow added, in an odd tone of voice. Campfire looked up to the small superhero inquisitively, but Marshmallow wasn't paying attention. She stared into the woods. "Campfire… if we were in trouble, what would you do?"

"Whatever it took to get you out. That's my job as a counselor, my duty as a Precure, and my honor as someone who cares for you," Campfire said, confused. Was that even a question?

"No child should have to go through what you did," said Belay with a comforting smile. "No adult, either, no teen. Nobody should. However, if the alternative is mass loss of life… how could we stand back and be safe when children are in danger?"

"We may not be counselors yet, but we love kids and we love camp!" chirped Cure Forest. "It's why we're here, training to be counselors someday. Even if we're only high schoolers, we want to give everything we have in order to protect everyone. That's why, even if it's sad, we can't stop doing what we're doing. We need to keep going."

"But… you're kids too… and I have to keep you safe. If I get hurt, fine, but if you do, it isn't just about explaining it to some hospital, your parents will ask questions about why I couldn't keep you safe. I'll ask questions about how I couldn't keep you safe…" Campfire sniffled.

"No offense, but you counselors haven't been doing a great job of keeping Color War away from us anyway," Forest said, despite the glares of the others. "I'd feel safer, I think I'd _be_ safer, if I could defend myself."

"We weren't lying when we said we won't give up this power willingly," said Belay. "This has made us better people. This has made us better at being leaders."

Campfire thought. The logic made sense, and the girls were good enough to beat her, despite that she wasn't at the top of her game. She thought of things she'd seen on social media, from Scrapbook to Tumbl. It was better, they said, to have teens do risky things where you could monitor them. She took a breath, having had an idea.

"Fine," she said. "I won't try to stop you, on a couple conditions."

"What?" asked Belay.

"First off, I'm going to join you. I'm going to become the fifth Care Package Precure."

* * *

"Are you sure you don't want to join the team?" asked the _Flying High! Precure_ , the _Night Activities Precure_ , the _Lovely Leadership Pretty Cure_ , and even the adventure-staff heavy _We are Pretty Cure Camporee_. Biddy said no to each, polite as anything, and went on with her solo training.

Teammates were more people to worry about, not as bad as civilians, but not invulnerable either. A reckless teammate might rush in, one who didn't consider her actions could cause a problem. Biddy worried that new member or not, she'd end up being the cautious one, the babysitter.

She was only contracted to take care of campers, not the staff who acted like them.

* * *

"Are you sure?" asked Cure Marshmallow for the thousandth time.

Cure Campfire nodded once more. "If you make sure to follow my other requirements, yes. No more Precure, and no, I don't care if the _whole camp_ has the potential, it's risky enough with just you four. No more campers transforming, and no more of this random planless battling. If you're going to fight, you have to know the full extent of your powers." She grinned. "We start training tomorrow."

Cure Marshmallow nodded, and Forest fistpumped. "Woo!" she yelled, her green hair flying all over the place. "We're a complete team now, with every element plus Marshmallow's dumb light powers to boot! What a team! What a group!"

Campfire sighed. Maybe this hadn't been the best decision after all, but it was too late to go back on it.

The only way to go for Cure Campfire and the four CITs was forward.

* * *

 _ED: Summer Camp Can-Can_

* * *

 _Next time on Care Package Precure:_

Vita: Yippee! We're a team, and we've got a counselor on our side, and-

Biddy: Don't be so loud, Vita! Nobody can know, especially with the children so close.

Brooke: I'm not always good at keeping secrets. They feel like lies!

Harper: Don't think of it that way. Think of it as a surprise.

Mallory: Speaking of surprises... Myfanwy's gone! There's a lot going on, so tune in to next week's Care Package Precure!

Care Package Precure: We'll conquer your fears all together now!


	7. Circle Game: Harper's Biggest Trial

_OP: Magical Story~Time_

* * *

"Wake up! Wake up, Vita! Harper! It's observation day!"

Harper groaned and pulled her blanket over her face. Vita rolled over, away from Mallory. Mallory frowned. Okay, so it was not nearly time to get up, but she couldn't quite understand how the two girls were still able to sleep. Even for a day at camp, it was special. Today was the last day before the first weekend break that came as standard of a half-resident camp. It was also the day the CITs took their first step into staff responsibilities. They got to watch the campers.

Mallory said as much, albeit keeping her speech quiet. Harper ignored her, and Vita rolled back over just to open one eye and groggily whisper "We aren't even doing anything with them, we're just seeing how counselors interact."

"Aren't you excited, though? It's our first time doing it!"

Vita closed her eyes again and made a sound that was comparable to a long stretch of the letter 'm.'

Mallory pulled herself back into her bunk and pouted as she stared up at the ceiling, still not sure as to why she was the only excited one. After all, they were here to be counselors. They all had to love kids, and they all had to be good with them.

Didn't they?

* * *

Mallory ended up sleeping a little more before getting up for the day. As she stretched and reached for Myfanwy, she blinked. The bird wasn't there. That in itself wasn't unusual- after all, the small fairy sometimes had to go use the restroom or fly off to stretch her wings for a while- but she hadn't been around earlier either.

Digging for clothes in her dresser, Harper looked up at Mallory. "Is something wrong?"

"Myfanwy's gone!" Mallory said, a little louder than intended.

From her own bunk, Vita looked up at Mallory curiously, and across the room, Brooke flashed the others a glance. Even Delcine smiled reassuringly as she put her shoes on. "Don't worry," she said quietly, "I'm sure she'll show up. I know your stuffie is really important to you, she probably just fell out of your bag. If you want, I'll check the lost and found with you."

"I, uh, doubt that will be necessary," Mallory said. "She'll probably be around somewhere, just like you said."

Delcine nodded solemnly. "I hope you find her."

Mallory sighed and looked out the window, hoping to get a glance of her fairy friend. "Me too," she said.

* * *

After breakfast, in which Myfanwy still didn't show up, Biddy and Amelie led the CITs around camp, dividing them into four groups. Delcine and three of the others were the first to leave the group as the two staff members dropped them off with a group of fourth and fifth graders. Down the trail, another group, including Kendra, went with a middle school program. As the Care Package Precure walked farther along, they saw that they were heading towards a kindergarten and first grade group.

Vita, Mallory, and Brooke smiled; little kids were great. Harper swallowed hard, though nobody seemed to notice in the excitement.

As they approached the group, where six little girls were running in the open games field, another counselor stepped up to meet them. "Biddy!" she said. "Are these the CITs?"

"Yes. I'm dropping off four of the CITs to your care, Li. These are Mallory, Vita, Brooke, and Harper. Guys, this is Lilac, a counselor for the five to eight age group." said Biddy. "Lilac, they're going to return to the CIT staff at dinner, okay?"

"Got it! Are they just observing?"

"Officially, but feel free to put them to work if both they and you feel comfortable with it," Biddy said with a nod. "Alright, I'll be off. I'm doing paperwork in the CIT cabin if anyone needs me, okay?"

"I'm helping in the kitchen," added Amelie, and the two turned and left.

Lilac smiled softly, kindly, at the four CITs. "I know you're only observing officially, but would you like to come say hi to the kids? We can go from there on if you want to do more for now, or just watch,"

Vita didn't even respond, instead opting to simply run up to the small group of kindergarten and first graders. "Hi, everyone!" she said enthusiastically. "I'm Vita, and I'm going to be watching you guys play today. What are all your names?"

The girls immediately crowded around their new playmate. Lilac smiled, but clapped in a rhythm that caught the attention of all the campers. "Hold on, girls, before you play with Vita, let the others introduce themselves too."

Mallory stepped forward, then got on her knees, tilted her head, and smiled, her worry for Myfanwy almost forgotten. "Hey there! I'm Mallory! I hope we can all get along." The campers all smiled back, looking pleased to meet her.

Brooke followed the lead of the first two. "My name is Brooke, and I'll also be spending the day with you. I hope to… oh! Is that a Shiny Starlight Club tee shirt? I love that show!"

The little girl in the pink shirt decorated with magical girls doing various club activities grew wide-eyed and nodded enthusiastically, rushing over to Brooke with a huge smile.

Harper went last. She walked straight up to the nearest five-year-old, her confidence ringing through her every step. "Hello, I'm Harper Hoshikaze," she said briskly. "Pleased to meet you."

The little girl stared at her.

"Well, aren't you going to introduce yourself?" Harper asked, confused.

Lilac stifled a laugh. "That's Emmeline. She's a little bit shy, but don't let that fool you. Once she gets to know you, she's very enthusiastic and talkative. Of course, I don't know that she's fully up to date on proper introductions for adults."

Harper blushed, and Lilac winked. "Well, I'll leave you to watching the group. If I were you, I'd pay attention to how I interact with them… what works, what doesn't… and make note of your opinions. Feel free to try interacting for yourself if you have an idea of how to. No counselor is perfect, and I'm sure you can think of ways to relate to the group that I might not be able to.

Despite the words, as Lilac walked away, Vita, Brooke, and Mallory turned to Harper with suspiciously sweet smiles playing on their faces. Mallory giggled, and Vita grinned. "Harper!" exclaimed the blonde teen, "don't tell me you're no good with kids!"

"I'm plenty good with kids!" Harper said in protest.

"You tried to shake hands with a kindergartener," Brooke pointed out, stifling giggles. "Not to be mean, but everyone knows I'm the worst with body language, and even _I_ know you don't do that."

Harper took a deep breath. "I was handshaking since I was five."

The three CITs stared at her disbelievingly.

"Well, it's because my sister told me we'd need to learn how to do handshake events when we were famous," she explained. "So, I suppose it's not completely unlikely that most kids wouldn't do it."

"Harper, it sounds like you and your sister were weird kids," Vita said flatly.

Harper pouted. "I was a completely normal child. I'll prove it to you. By the end of the day, all the kids will love me… especially Emmeline!"

* * *

It was right before lunch that the Care Package team decided to try to start engaging the kids. Each girl did so with a different style. During adventure, in which the small girls attempted a low to the ground balance beam, Mallory wowed them with a number of simple gymnastics tricks that they begged her to teach them. After lunch, Brooke got into a discussion over whether it was Shiny Starlight Art or Shiny Starlight Chef that was the better magical girl, and let the kid win with a wink to the others. Vita didn't seem to even do a thing; kids flocked to her as naturally as butterflies flocked to flowers.

Harper watched and tried to learn. A couple hours after lunch, she approached Emmeline again, with a stilted smile. "Are you having fun?" she asked, trying to seem like someone that the little girl could talk to.

She must have failed, because Emmeline nodded, then ran away to hide behind a sympathetically smiling Lilac.

Harper sighed. It was already a long, long day.

* * *

"Swimtime!" announced Lilac an hour and a half before dinner started. "Everyone quickly get changed and get into the lake!"

The girls crowded into the changing hut and Lilac turned to the CITs. "How are you doing?"

"The kids are so great!" said Mallory. "I like them all so much!" Vita and Brooke nodded agreement.

Lilac laughed. "I can tell they like you, too. There's some natural flair there, no wonder you want to be counselors."

Harper looked down and adjusted her glasses. "Good job, guys," she said, trying to smile.

"Harper," Lilac said, "don't be upset. Lots of people need to learn to work with kids. It doesn't come naturally to everyone."

"I tried to shake a child's hand, and I'm fairly sure small children can smell fear."

"Well, um, more or less, yes," said Lilac, blushing. "Still, just give it more time. You're here for the next two months to learn how to do this."

Harper didn't seem reassured.

The kids came streaming out, one after the other. Trailing behind was little Emmeline. As the girls filed onto the beach, Lilac faced the CITs. "Emmeline hates the lake," she said. "If you want to really test your skills with kids, get her into the water at all. I sure can't."

"Challenge accepted!" Mallory said. "We'll get her, don't you worry."

As the other girls ran into the water, Emmeline plopped down on the sandy beach and silently began to watch her friends. "Okay!" said Mallory to the others, "our new Care Package mission: engage the kindergartener! Mission start!"

"I'll go first! I have an idea!" Brooke stripped her shoes and socks and waded into the lake. "Come play with me!" she said. "Emmeline! The water's great! We can just stay in the shallow end."

Emmeline shook her head and remained sitting on the beach. "Lemme try!" said Vita. "Emmy, come on, we have to go look for mermaids."

The little girl stared at Vita sourly. "I don't like mermaids," she said stubbornly. "And my name's not Emmy."

Vita narrowed her eyes and put a hand on her own chin. "Tough nut to crack," she muttered.

Mallory sat down next to Emmeline. "Do you want to just stick a toe in and see how that is?"

"No." Emmeline scooted away from Mallory and turned her back to the lake entirely.

The three other CITs looked at Harper, who sighed. "Okay, I'll try, but we've already established that little kids aren't my strong point," she said. She walked over to Emmeline and crouched down. "Okay, Emmeline. Are you afraid of the lake?"

Emmeline nodded slowly, looking suspiciously at Harper. The other three CITs watched their friend, amazed that she seemed to be breaking through.

"Me too," said Harper truthfully. "I've never, ever liked lake water. It's kind of weird, isn't it, how you can't see to the bottom?" Emmeline nodded. Her face was loosening, looking more interested. Harper continued, but walked around Emmeline so that the girl had to adjust to face the water once more. "See the lifeguards out on the dock?"

Emmeline nodded.

"They're there to protect you. No matter what, even if you only put a foot into the water, they'll make sure you stay safe. We won't force you to go into the deep end, but you should try to at least get ankle-deep, okay?"

Emmeline paused, then said, timidly, "What about the fish?"

"What?"

"Are they gonna be in the shallow area?"

Harper shrugged. "Yeah, probably. There's all sorts of marine life in the lake… tadpoles, minnows, waterbugs, snapping turtles, water snakes… probably lots more that I've never even seen!"

First, the little girl's lip quivered, then she burst into tears.

Harper grew red and rushed away, towards Lilac. "I'm so sorry!" she apologized, even bowing automatically. "Please forgive me! I didn't mean for this to happen!"

Lilac waved a hand as she walked to Emmeline. "Harper, it's fine, she does this at least once a day, don't worry." Still, as the counselor passed, Harper buried her face in her hands, and was still like that when her three friends caught up to her.

Vita laughed. "Harper, that was awful!"

"Vita!" scolded Mallory, before turning to Harper. "You really were engaging her for a moment. You're starting to get it, you just need… a few lessons… maybe a little push?"

"I'm sure Biddy knows what to do and how to help," Brooke said with a small smile. "She may be a little hard on us, but I've seen her interact with little kids. She's really good at it."

"Really?"

"Yeah," said Brooke. "For her CIT internship three years ago, she was put with the youngest girls, and they loved her! I think she was with them as a junior counselor two years ago too. I was really surprised to see her with girls our age, actually."

"Let's see if Lilac would let us go and find her," suggested Mallory.

The girls waited for Emmeline to be calm and Lilac to begin to walk back to her chair on the beach. As soon as she approached, they surrounded her and explained the situation.

"Well, if you aren't water safety certified, and can't get Emmeline to swim, there's not much you can do here, and so…" Lilac said thoughtfully, "well, then I suppose there's no harm in letting you go talk to Biddy. Stay as a group, alright?"

"Okay!" said Mallory. "Thanks! Guys, let's go get advice!"

* * *

"Hey Biddy!" Mallory yelled in a sing-song as she dragged Harper along to the counselor. "We need your help!"

"Is this going to be a Precure thing?" asked Biddy in a wary, but resigned voice. "Seriously, how much trouble can four CITs get into? This has to be a new record."

Vita spoke up happily. "This isn't about Precure! Harper's horrible with kids! Please help her!" Mallory pushed the girl in question forward with a beam.

"I wouldn't have phrased it exactly like that," Harper said darkly, glowering at Vita.

"She's pretty darn bad," continued the oblivious Vita.

Biddy's stoic expression shifted into a smile. "Okay, that I can help with. It's actually really easy to be a cool, relatable counselor. I do it with you guys all the time."

"Really?" asked Vita, blinking. "When?"

As Biddy turned sour once again, Mallory clasped a hand over her friend's mouth. "Sorry about her," she apologized to Biddy and Harper. "Please continue."

"Okay, it's pretty simple for young kids," Biddy said with a thoughtful frown. "Let them lead the conversation as much as you can. Definitely show your interest in what you have to say. Treat them with the same respect as you would an adult or another teen- they can tell if you don't- but remember that you may have to phrase things differently, as they're young."

Mallory waved her free hand in the air, the other still muffling Vita. "Oh, oh! And to make a special point, get down to their eye level. It helps them connect with you to see you making yourself small."

Through Mallory's hand, Vita spoke, and though the words were muffled, they weren't muffled _enough_. "Mallie, should you really be making yourself any smaller?"

Mallory put her formerly free hand over the one covering Vita's mouth. "You," she said to the blonde girl, "have lost your speaking privileges."

Harper sighed. "I just don't feel comfortable doing it. It feels fake."

"It's going to," said Brooke with a smile. "It's just one of those things you have to fake until you make. If something isn't natural for you, then it isn't going to feel natural. Luckily, working with kids is a skill, and as long as you can fake confidence in it, you'll eventually gain real confidence. If you can't fake it though, the kids will be able to tell."

"That's what I'm worried about, that I can't fake it."

Biddy reassuringly put a hand on Harper's shoulder. "The very fact that you care is the best start you can have. In the end, whether they think you're a cool counselor or a lame one, if they know you care, then they'll like you at least a bit."

"Is this a bad time to say I just want them to like me _more_ than 'at least a bit?'"

Mallory smiled and shrugged. "That's only natural, but if kids aren't natural to you, you'll have to be prepared to work for it."

"Exactly," said Biddy, squeezing her hand a bit, comforting Harper. "You'll get it. Thanks for coming to me to ask, too, that shows a lot of maturity. I'm just glad this wasn't a magical problem."

From the distance, the girls heard a scream.

Biddy sighed. "Okay, I take that to mean that now it is. Let's head over there and see if we can stop it before someone gets hurt."

Mallory grinned and removed her hands from Vita's mouth so she could fistpump. "Let's go! Care Package Precure, time to move on out!"

* * *

As they approached the beach, the water was silent and unmoving, not even producing the little ripples expected of a pond or lake. Just on the shore, as though finishing evacuating from the water, were all the little girls the CITs had spent the day watching. Somehow, the sight was worse than anything they'd seen before, though only Mallory voiced it. "Why weren't we here to protect them?" she asked softly.

Biddy's face was set in firm determination. "There's still a chance, girls. Besides, this was on Lilac and the lifeguards."

"There must be another Humglum elsewhere; look, they're gone," said Harper.

"Bingo!" rang out a voice standing on the opposite side of the beach. "Us generals have to do double damage if we want to do any at all. With sixty-five Precure, we shouldn't stand a chance without a bit o' strategy to back us up."

The girls shifted attention to the general standing next to a frozen Emmeline. Sitting at the feet of Plum and the little girl was a Fearful Bead.

* * *

 _EYECATCH 1: A brief montage of Mallory images: petting an alpaca, making a s'more, and finally, twirling around as Cure Marshmallow with a cute smile._

 _EYECATCH 2: Myfanwy and Hestia fly in circles, then fall into the arms of Mallory. She is surrounded by the two CIT counselors and all of the CITs. Together, they grin, looking for all the world like the best of friends._

* * *

"Well, y'all missed the best part!" said Plum cheerily. "Now, would you believe this girl ain't afraid of the lake itself like y'all believed? She's afraid of the stuff she thinks is inside it, and man, the imagination she has would make you think an aquarium escaped into there."

"Plum, don't you dare transform Emmeline!" Harper said, hands on her hips and eyes burning with angry flames. "I'll never forgive it if you do."

Plum considered, then smiled. "Seein' as I'm the bad guy here, I reckon y'all won't do much forgivin' either way. Anyhew, I wanna see yer new abilities. Be sure to give this here villainess a real show, m'kay? Now, little girl, darlin'... as I see your fears, let them become!"

From Emmeline emerged a pink and black jellyfish monster that swam into the air. Its tentacles glowed with a strange energy. "Humglum!" it roared as it shot some at the five.

Mallory and Brooke stumbled back, Harper ducked gracefully, and Vita and Biddy jumped out of the way with a perfected ease. Mallory bit her lip. "Well, there's only one thing to do now. Care Package Precure, let's do this!"

As they quickly came back together, Brooke, Vita, Harper, and Mallory linked hands, leaving an open spot for Biddy. "Well?" asked Mallory. "Are we transforming or not?"

Biddy raised an eyebrow. "You transform together?"

"Well, yeah!"

"I don't know if holding hands with campers is really appropriate."

"It's fine!" said Brooke. "I think you just need our permission, and I'm good with it."

"Me too!" chirped Mallory.

Reluctantly, Biddy joined the circle, just in time to stick her brooch into the hair in unison with the four girls. "Precure!" they shouted together. "Lead me home!"

The background of pink light surrounded them, with confetti-like shapes in green, purple, yellow, and red floating in it. The transformation, perhaps not built for five all at once, pulled them apart. Mallory floated in the air as light turned into her pink outfit; Harper danced on the ground. Brooke cutely posed, Vita twirled and moved dynamically, and Bitty brushed her hand over her chest, arms, and legs, materializing her costume as she went.

As they came back together, they posed one at a time. "Protecting the promise of hearth and home, I am Cure Marshmallow!"

"Protecting the promise of safety and comfort, I am Cure Belay!"

"Protecting the promise of light and beauty, I am Cure Forest!"

"Protecting the promise of family and friendship, I am Cure Cocoa!"

"A shining light of…" The redhead sighed as she saw her four teammates glaring at her. She cleared her throat and began again, though with less enthusiasm. "Fine, fine. _Protecting the promise_ of warmth and health, I am Cure Campfire!"

"That's better," said Forest with a grin.

Marshmallow smiled as well. "Okay! Let's do this, everyone!"

"The starlight that shines upon these woods, we're Care Package Precure!" The five young women grasped hands and spun around as the pink light blended with the other colors into a rainbow, surrounding them. As Campfire and Cocoa let go, the group became a straight line and posed in unison. "We'll conquer your fears all together now!"

The Humglum didn't so much as appreciate their posing, though Plum smiled at it. "Humglum!" cried the jellyfish-like beast as it shot more of its glowing magic ink at the group. This time, all but Belay shot upwards in response, and Belay summoned her wind, " _Blueberry Belay Solaris!_ " to turn the Humglum's magic against it. The ink hit the thing with a fizzle, burning a large hole into it like acid. It only took seconds for the monster to knit itself back together.

Cure Campfire's eyes were wide, and she shook her head. "That would burn straight through us. See, this is why you need me here."

"I dunno, Belay took care of herself there," said Forest with a grin. "It's not like that goop can burn any worse than you could."

Campfire glared, but Cocoa looked thoughtful. "Hmm! Burning… I wonder if this is something I could help with?" She let herself fall from the sky, rapidly as possible. It was a combination of natural grace and Precure magic that still let her land on her feet, still made it possible for her to automatically move into an elegant curtsey. "Let me show you my own power!" she said to the Humglum, her face almost glowing with anticipation for the fight. "This super-duper seizure-prone strategist won't let you live in your current form! _Banana Cocoa Boil!"_

The stream of water, however, seemed to have no negative effect on the Humglum. It basked in the feel of Cocoa's glorified water gun, and when the magic faltered, the monster did not. "Humglum!" it said once again, raising its tentacles to attack once again."

From out of the sky, Cure Forest began to free fall. "Wheeeeeee!" she exclaimed, giggling until she softly landed on the jellyfish's big, bouncy back. She began jumping softly, using it as a trampoline to get more and more momentum. After a moment, she seemed to get serious, extending a leg for a kick.

She slammed into the jellyfish, seeming to sink into it for a moment, then bounced back up, out of control. Cure Campfire facepalmed.

Cure Cocoa thought. "Hey, Campfire, would your trick with the stars from yesterday be any good?"

"My trick with the stars? Oh!" Campfire's eyes grew wide. "No, probably not, but some of you also have Courage Beads, and I doubt Plum would be expecting it."

"I will if y'all keep loudly announcing your strategy," smiled the Color War general from the tree where she had perched precariously.

The group ignored her. "What do you mean?" asked Cure Marshmallow. "The beads we get when we defeat a Humglum?"

Campfire nodded. "Double tap one. You should know what to do."

Cure Marshmallow nodded and double-tapped on the Courage Bead she'd gotten from Kendra. "Let's go!" she cried as her power wordlessly instructed. "Storms, courage up!"

Immediately, her brooch glistened and shifted into a lightning bolt shape. Gold trim adorned her outfit, and strands of golden hair highlighted the pink. Marshmallow could feel the energy running through her as she made a determined fist and continued with the next incantation that came to her. " _Lemon Stormy Stick!"_

A burst of lightning hit the Humglum and it roared and stumbled backwards. As it did, the golden accents in Cure Marshmallow's uniform fizzled out, leaving her breathless and tired.

Cure Forest seemed to notice. "Hang on!" she yelled. "I've got one too! Let's go, darkness, courage up!" A single flash, and the greens retreated to make room for black accents. Forest's gold clover took the shape of a black crescent moon. " _Blackberry Darklight Broil_!"

Now hit from the other side, the Humglum roared and collapsed beneath its own weight as Forest almost did the same. Her outfit flashed again, returning to normal.

Cocoa glided across the battlefield and sucker-punched the Humglum, immediately twisting into a high kick. As she did so, she made eye contact with Belay. "Purification time," she instructed calmly before turning back and grabbing two of the giant jellyfish's tentacles, tying them expertly in a friendship knot.

Cure Campfire's face was mildly horrified. "I think she learned too much at camp."

"Cocoa is a sweetheart until she's angry," Belay noted. "I'd be more worried about what she'd do if she hadn't paid that much attention in knot tying lessons."

"Isn't the strategist supposed to not also be the best physical fighter?" Campfire asked quietly.

"I try not to subscribe to genre stereotypes. If I allowed myself to fall into that trap, I'd never get over the fact that we're not fourteen years old and in a school setting."

They left the conversation at that and Campfire slipped her hand into Belay's as they prepared to summon their weapons.

"Breezy Batonette!"

"Blazing Batonette, appear!"

The two spun their weapons in sync, ending with the batons pointing at the Humglum. As Cocoa raced out of the way, the teammates spoke the purification together. "Fears be banished! Courageous Finale!"

The monster cried out in protest, but disintegrated all the same. From her tree, Plum shook her head. "Really, none of y'all are as bright as I'd expect of a team o' Precure. Flaunting your true power like that? Not leaving anything up to surprise? You spam your magic as soon as you get it, and the others will soon find that pattern out. Still, I can't complain. Makes it easier on me, after all."

"What do you mean?" demanded Cure Marshmallow, still panting softly.

"Geez, you really ain't bright, are you? Figure it out on your own," Plum said, her voice full of scorn, as she disappeared.

Cure Belay and Cure Marshmallow walked over to where Emmeline was sleeping. Marshmallow picked up the bead that had been left behind, which had a lovely painting of fish on a blue background. "Here, Cocoa, you should keep this one," she said. "It's right up your alley, being water and all!"

"Belay can keep it! It might be better if we try to give people unrelated beads so that everyone has a wide range of powers."

"Yeah, but…" Belay shuddered, then continued. "You weren't there for my fear reveal. Water isn't my strong suit, just as much as heights aren't. Besides, you decimated that thing."

Cocoa blushed, but took the bead and slipped it onto the bracelet that materialized.

"So now everyone's got a bead except Belay!" Marshmallow said with a cheer. "And Campfire has two!"

"With all this magic, Color War doesn't stand a chance in ten," Forest added with a grin.

"Shh!" said Belay. She propped Emmeline's head up on her lap carefully. "You'll wake her, and she's so small… she needs the rest."

It was too late. The little girl began to stir, then her eyes fluttered open. Immediately, she smiled, though it was obviously weak. "I remember you," she said. "You saved me! What's your name?"

Cure Belay blushed. "I'm Ha- I mean, I'm _happy to help,_ and my name is Cure Belay. How are you feeling?"

Emmeline yawned. "I'm so, so sleepy. I feel less afraid, though. I think I want to give the water one more try."

"Not now," Belay said, shaking her head. "You need to rest and take care of yourself, okay? The lake will be there for the rest of camp, but only if you're up for it. Promise me you'll get some rest, okay?"

Emmeline thought, then asked, "Can I get your autograph?"

"I don't have any paper, but…"

Immediately, Cure Belay was hit in the head with a notebook and pen. "You're welcome!" yelled Cure Marshmallow as she closed her backpack up with a smug smirk.

Belay blushed bright red, but took the paper and pen and drew a quick chibi anime-style doodle of herself holding her fingers up in two twin victory signs. Underneath it, she wrote in surprisingly cute, quick lettering, _Follow your dreams and face your fears! Love, Cure Belay!_ Several hearts underlined the message.

Emmeline grinned, her eyes lighting up. When Belay ripped the page out of the book, Emmeline hugged it close to her chest. "Thank you! You're the absolute best!"

"Campfire," said Marshmallow, "can you go get Biddy?"

Cure Campfire winked and disappeared into the woods, reemerging a minute or so after as her civilian self. "Let's get back to your group, Emmeline," said Biddy, and the two walked off.

* * *

"Sign my address book!" said Vita hours later as she thrust out a small leather notebook. Harper rolled her eyes and obliged, but upon getting it back, Vita pouted. "Hey! This is just your name, not the cute signature you gave that camper! Why can't I have one like hers?"

"Come to think of things, how come you have a cute signature in the first place?" asked Brooke with a tiny frown. "Was this something nobody told me about being Precure?"

"No, no, definitely not. Mariko- my twin sister," she explained to Mallory, "is into pop idols, that's all. When we were both small, she would lead a game where we sat down and practiced what our signatures would look like. I'm surprised it adapted so well into my Cure identity and English; I'm used to signing my name in Japanese."

Vita put her hands over her mouth in surprise, then squished her cheeks together. "Harper's surprisingly cute! Who would have thought?"

"Girls, that's all good, but what about your new Courage Bead?"

The four looked over to the woods, where the voice had come from. Myfanwy was flying towards them.

Mallory's eyes went wide. "Myfanwy! Where have you been?"

The small bird blushed and looked away. "I was scouting out the camp and looking for Hestia. You guys all have a lot on your plate, so we haven't had a chance to find her as a group. I spent five days cramped in Mallory's backpack, too, so I'm a little impatient."

"I guess we should have made your concern for your cousin a priority," admitted Mallory. "Sorry."

Myfanwy waved a wing dismissively. "No, no, I can search for her. You just keep this camp safe so I find her before Color War does. Speaking of it, I saw you earned a new bead, Cure Cocoa. Try it out!"

"Now?"

"Each bead has both a civilian and a Precure use. Aren't you curious to see what they are?"

"I guess," Brooke said, stumbling over her words a bit. She double tapped it. "Let's go, marine life, courage up!"

A fizzle of magic made its way up her legs. In a moment, those same legs had disappeared, replaced with a sparkling yellow mermaid's tail. Brooke flopped it on the ground. "That's the civilian use?" giggled Vita.

"It's a little intense," Harper said with a smile.

"Never mind intense!" said Brooke. "Help me get back to normal!"

* * *

Brooke was long returned to her fully civilian form by the time five o clock rolled around. The four girls sat in the waiting area, each passing around their address books, exchanging information. "I hope no Humglums attack anyone while we're alone," Brooke said worriedly. "I don't know if any of us could face one on our own."

"Nobody's had to yet," Mallory agreed, "and when it looked like I might, both times I almost got clobbered."

"Biddy said that the reason Humglums only strike here is because of the proximity to the portal and to the Infinite Princess, whoever that is. The staff stays over the weekend, so I'm sure that they'll be able to take care of any monsters that appear," Harper commented matter-of-factly.

Vita raised an eyebrow. "Sure, because the staff dealing with Humglums and Color War generals has had such a good track record so far. Adults. Can't trust them to do much of anything."

Harper raised an eyebrow. "Isn't your eighteenth birthday in about two months?" she asked.

Crossing her arms and pouting, Vita winked. "Well, I'm not there yet."

The girls laughed as parents began to walk in. Mallory smiled softly. The first week of camp had flown by, and she was almost not quite ready to go home for the weekend.

Still, it'd be nice to have a break from the battles, tragedies, and campers turning into monsters.

As her mom and dad arrived, Mallory hugged Harper, the only Care Package girl left in the waiting area. "I'll see you Sunday night," she said.

Harper nodded. "One of these weekends, you all have to come visit me, okay?"

"Yeah! Definitely! But for now, I'm ready to head home, and it looks like my family is ready to see me. Hope yours gets here soon!"

"They probably got stuck in commuter traffic. It always happens," grinned Harper. "It's okay. I'll go hang out with Mariko. See you soon!"

"Yep! Bye!"

Mallory ran over to her parents. "Mama! Papa!"

Her father lifted her up as though she were seven and not fifteen. "Mallory! How was your first week at your new camp?"

She thought. "Eventful," she said at last. "I'll tell you some stuff about it in the car."

" _Some_ stuff?"

Mallory grinned and thought of Myfanwy hiding in the CIT cabin, keeping the CIT pins safe and sound. "I think some things have to stay here. At least for now," she explained as they walked towards the car.

* * *

 _ED: Summer Camp Can Can_

* * *

 _Next time on Care Package Precure:_

Mallory: The best thing about a half-resident camp is getting to go home for weekends.

Brooke: Yeah! I did some shopping, and found something amazing!

Harper: Wait…

Biddy: Is that…

Vita: This could change everything! Tune in next time for a new episode of Care Package Precure!

All: We'll conquer your fears all together now!


	8. Miraculous: Tales of Cure Cocoa

_OP: Magical Story~Time_

* * *

In the depths of the Legendary Land, ruins of an old castle loomed. Any who looked could see that the walls were white marble, that the windows that appeared to be stained glass at first glance were actually paper-thin gemstones, and that the lights that floated around were miniature stars. However, the great obsidian doors had been decorated with bad graffiti in a multitude of colors. Paint splatters ruined the pristine castle, and over time the numerous shades had mixed together, so in some places, the decoration was a gross, muddy, brown.

Inside, in the rainbow-decorated former throne room, the Color War generals convened. Only one was excited for the coming meeting, and he was the one who spoke.

"You're all doing so well!" exclaimed Cardinal with a grin. "Oh, how those Precure think they're winning, but in reality, their meddling gives us more seeds of glorious fear to exploit. What fun! What strategy! Good job, everyone, and especially Plum! I'll admit, I was reluctant when you joined up, but you've become my best protégé yet!"

"I ain't your diddly darn protégé," Plum said with a frown. "I ain't really a fan of you one bit, in fact, let alone some greenhorn mentee who thinks of you as a teacher."

Cardinal flipped his long red hair and gave a dashing grin. "Regardless, my sweets, we're doing so well that I believe it is time to induct another into the dark, contrasting glory of our inner circle."

Across the room, Verte and Cobalt rolled their eyes in unison as they continued button-mashing. The large television screen in front of them now showed a street fighting game, and though Verte was winning, it was only by a little. "Whatever," said Cobalt with a yawn.

"No, not whatever," said a new voice.

The five villains immediately sat up straighter. Verte threw her controller down, sweating, and Cobalt quickly paused the game and did the same. As everyone brushed off their clothes, bit their lips nervously, and got ready to bow, a newcomer entered into the room.

Her dress was a reflection of the ancient palace that Color War now possessed; once it would have been pure, white, and regal, but now it was tattered and torn. Though previously floor length, the hem was torn right above the knee, and the fabric frayed. Ruined ribbons of dark pink lace criss-crossed the body, and the entire dress looked as though it had been the victim of several paint guns. However, this was not the only thing the lady wore. A hooded black floor length cape swept the toes on her bare feet, and covered most of her dark reddish-brown hair. Around her thin and delicate dark neck sat a necklace of misshapen grey Fearful Beads that glimmered like wet clay.

As she swept into the palace, she looked around, and as she did, her eyes glowed blood red. "Dreadful," she spat. "You say you've done well, but you squat in a ruined monument to my doppelganger's power, rather than the temples we six deserve. Why is that?"

"M-mistress… Infinite Rose… my goddess…"

"Don't flatter me, Cardinal. Simply inform me of what caused this oversight." As Infinite Rose barked her orders, her open mouth revealed pristine white fangs, the only thing in sight completely devoid of color.

"We don't deserve comfort until you are fully… yourself… again." Cardinal faltered. "I believe living like this keeps all of us generals motivated."

"It forces me to watch you roll around in a pigsty, that's what it does," said Infinite Rose with a sneer. "Find some better arrangements after you create your new general. This new member is a celebration of how well the preparations for seizing the planet Earth is going, is it not?"

"It is, my goddess."

"And you have no fear of the Precure there?"

Cardinal grinned, and for the first time in any of the other generals' memories, he looked truly sinister. "After tomorrow, no, I don't."

* * *

It was so good to be back in civilization.

Summerheart, New York was certainly not a city, and barely big enough to count as a town. Its claim to fame was Summerheart College, now all but closed for the summer. Downtown was dreadfully empty, with none of the sensory experiences Brooke sought out, but it was still nice compared to the isolation of camp. Brooke wandered the streets, visiting the same old familiar stops. She got a flavored ice after lunch as a special treat, and bought a few new books to read during rest hour at her favorite used bookstore. The craft shop offered materials for a new rag doll she was making.

By three, Brooke's arms ached with the weight of several shopping bags, but there was still one more place she wanted to go.

She'd seen the new thrift shop as she rode the bus into town, and rolled her eyes at how fast it had appeared. She hadn't even been away a week and things changed, but that wasn't too unbelievable nowadays... Brooke giggled at the thought… she sounded like an old lady… but it was true.

A small, broken bell jingled as she pushed the door to the store open. Inside, the lighting was minimal, dark, gloomy. Stacks of books lined the walls, and the center of the small shop held displays full of jewelry, decorations, and other antiques. Off to the side was a single cash register that looked as though it had been plucked from the nineteenth century.

The young man behind it had hair even redder than Biddy's, and a dull, flat nose that was pressed almost completely against an old, thick book. He didn't even seem to notice the girl walking into the store, which Brooke was fine with. It meant less pressure to buy things, leaving a better browsing experience.

She spent a few minutes thumbing through copies of young adult books that had been said to be classics, but turned out to only be a fad, then moseyed over to the cheap beaded bracelets and necklaces. Most were the kind grandmothers wore, and a few were badly-made trinkets that were barely worth the fifty cent price tag on them. One was handmade, a child's art project probably, with many glass beads and a single bead of perfect black clay with a painted design.

Wait.

Brooke gasped.

The boy at the front counter finally looked up, and made his way over to her. "Does any jewelry catch your eye, miss?" he asked in a voice that was strangely enthusiastic for one who had seemed so bored.

Brooke held up the Courage Bead on its necklace. "This! Where is this from?"

The boy shrugged. "I don't know, it's something we got in a shipment from church donations. They said there was a note with it, it's supposed to be lucky. It can change your entire demeanor… bring out the best parts of you for all to see. Sounds like crap to me, but some people buy it, or they say they do anyway. As you can tell, it's still here, so take that as you will. It's only a quarter if you want it, though."

Brooke nodded and dug a twenty-five cent piece from her pocket. She handed it to the boy, who grinned. "It's yours," he said. "Hope for your sake it's as magic as they say it is."

She rubbed her fingers on the bead. "I know it will be," she responded with a smile.

* * *

Sunday afternoon came all too quickly after the weekend tasks of laundry, packing things forgotten in week one, and sleeping in a real bed for the first time in days. Still, Mallory was excited to get back to camp, back to Myfanwy and Precure duties. Sometimes she felt bad (was she supposed to enjoy being a magical girl? Was it supposed to be just a job? She should prefer being a normal camper with a normal life to having to risk hers to save the world, right?). She knew she could barely help it, though; she was an adrenaline fiend through and through.

As she entered the CIT cabin, she saw Vita and Harper already there. "Hey everyone! How was your weekend?"

"It was great! Mama and Papa took my sister and me to see a Broadway musical," Harper said with a smile. "I hadn't seen that particular one yet, so it was very fun."

"I slept!" said Vita. "Like, I slept the whole day. I'm still really tired, though."

Harper shook her head and snorted. "Sleeping all day makes you even more tired, so of course you are."

"It was fun, though!" said Vita. "That's what matters."

Mallory giggled. "Where are Biddy and Brooke?"

"Biddy is in the counselor room right now; she's talking with Myfanwy, trying to find Hestia. Brooke hasn't arrived yet," said Harper.

As though on cue, the door opened, and sunlight streamed through the trees into the cabin as the girl in question stepped in. Her hair was decorated with lovely combs, her outfit was better suited to a party than a summer camp, and sunglasses hid her eyes. On her wrist was a simple bracelet with not one, but _two_ courage beads.

"Brooke!" exclaimed Mallory, Harper, and Vita together. They got up from their beds and walked over to meet her.

Brooke whipped off her sunglasses in a way that shouldn't have looked as cool as it did. "Looking for me?" she said with a knowing smile that was completely unlike her.

"Yeah!" Mallory clapped her hands together. "Brooke, you look so cool!"

"Thanks! I got this lucky charm over the weekend." She held out her bracelet so that the group could admire the new addition. The black bead had splatters of paint all over it in every color of the rainbow.

Vita made a face. "What was this nerd afraid of, paintball?"

"Be nice," chided Mallory.

"I can't wait to find out what it does!" said Brooke, her smile holding less of the newfound cockiness and more of its normal soft excitement. "It was really cool to see the bead there. I wonder how it got out of camp."

"There's plenty of counselors, maybe there's one in your town and they lost a bead and someone else found it," suggested Vita.

"Maybe."

A creak from behind the four made them look. Biddy stood at the doorway to the counselor's suite. "Can I see Mallory, Brooke, Vita, and Harper outside?" she asked sweetly.

* * *

They followed her out to the picnic tables some ways away from the cabin. "How was your weekend?" asked Biddy, speaking to the group, though she looked at Vita, expecting her to speak first.

However, Brooke took that opportunity. "Great, but not as good as this week is going to be. I'm ready to shred those Humglums and burn Color War to the ground!"

The counselor looked taken aback. "Um. That's good… I guess?"

"Yeah! Nothing can stand in the way of Brooke Hudson!" announced the girl, making twin fists. "I'm ready!"

Harper's face was concerned, and it was backed up with how she tried to change the subject. "So, Biddy, what's up?"

"I'll let our fairy friend explain. Myfanwy?"

The bird popped out of Biddy's backpack. "Hello, everyone!"

"Hi!" chimed the four CITs.

"We've got a lead on Hestia, sort of," said Biddy.

Mallory blinked. "Really? How good! What is it?"

"I explained to Myfanwy that many of my friends on other teams had mascots of sorts, fairies that fled from various worlds to Earth. Obviously, the youngest ones can't defend themselves or disguise themselves. They still need help to live, even having escaped Color War, and who better to take them in than the Precure?" Biddy nodded as she talked, almost as though she was explaining to herself. "It's likely that if Hestia got separated, came through the portal too soon or too late, she could have been found by another group."

"I figured something like that, but I'm still worried-crow," admitted the fairy, then immediately grew redder than normal. "I mean, I'm still worried."

"It's normal for fairies to speak like that, Myfanwy," Biddy said.

The bird made a face. "If they're babies."

"Show them you're no baby, Myf!" said Brooke out of the blue. "Prove to everyone you're as good a grownup fairy as they are! Fight them if you have to, ok-"

Mallory interrupted. "So, how are we going to search for Hestia then?"

"Myfanwy's going to look on her own. She can make an excuse for who she is, why she's here. We can't help her… no other Precure can know about you four, and I don't think I can leave you alone long enough to help her out myself," Biddy said.

Myfanwy saluted with a wing. "Then, I'm off! I'll tell you my progress tonight. Goodbye, Precure!"

The group watched her lift off and dart into the trees. For a moment or so, less than a hundred and twenty seconds, it was peaceful, quiet.

In retrospect, Harper would have seen everything coming. Nothing was quiet for long at Breezy Bridge, and so when the giant pencil monster showed up, nobody was completely surprised at the event, only at the timing.

Biddy looked up at the monster, eyes wide. "A Humglum? Here? That's odd. There's nobody besides us around… why would it be targeting our group?"

"No worries!" said Brooke happily. "We've got this, weird or not!"

"You seem a lot more confident lately. It's great!" said Biddy, though she was almost frowning in confusion.

Brooke grinned and spun around. "My new Courage Bead is certainly a lucky charm! I feel great, and there's no Color War general to antagonize us, just us, a Humglum, and some kick-butt action. I'm ready to transform when you all are!"

Mallory, Harper, Vita, and Biddy nodded. They formed a circle, slipped their brooches into their hair, and held hands as they shouted the magic words. "Precure, lead me home!"

Quintuple pops of shirts and skirts in five different colors defined the transformation, those little details such as Harper's glasses disappearing and the materialization of Vita's shorts adding depth to the event. One by one, as always, they introduced themselves as the transformation concluded.

"Protecting the promise of hearth and home, I am Cure Marshmallow!"

"Protecting the promise of safety and comfort, I am Cure Belay!"

"Protecting the promise of light and beauty, I am Cure Forest!"

"Protecting the promise of family and friendship, I am Cure Cocoa!"

"Protecting the promise of warmth and health, I am Cure Campfire!"

Then, in unison, they spoke once more. "The starlight that shines upon these woods, we're Care Package Precure! We'll conquer your fears all together now!"

* * *

As the girls transformed, a man with red hair and a frightening smile watched on from his treetop perch. Just as the five teammates began to pose, ready to announce themselves, he snapped his fingers and the Humglum disappeared.

* * *

The Precure noticed immediately upon finishing their poses.

"Where did it go?" asked Cure Marshmallow, blinking curiously as she glanced around the clearing. "Is it invisible?"

"Maybe. Do we have a bead that could help?" asked Cure Campfire.

There were shrugs all around, except from Cure Cocoa. "Let me try my new one!"

"We don't even know what it is, though," said Belay with a frown.

"Yeah!" Cure Forest cheered. "Which is exactly why it could help. You do it, Cocoa!"

"Alright, I will! Now, it's time to get real!" Cure Cocoa said with a grin. She double tapped her new bead. The words didn't quite come easily to her, but she knew them well enough from listening to her friends. "Let's go! Um, Courage Bead, courage up!"

The bead turned grey and misshapen, and dark light spilled rapidly from it. That was the last thing Cocoa saw before the blacked out.

* * *

 _EYECATCH 1: A brief montage of Harper moments: showing off a stylish outfit, singing songs around the campfire next to Mallory, and summoning wind as Cure Belay_

 _EYECATCH 2: Myfanwy and Hestia fly in circles, then fall down, one landing on each of Harper's shoulders. Harper looks to Myfanwy, then to Hestia, and then to the camera, giving the last one a small smile._

* * *

Where once had stood their good friend Cure Cocoa, now stood a girl who looked _almost_ the same.

Her dark skin hadn't changed, nor had her bright yellow hair and eyes. However, her overshirt had disappeared, replaced by a frayed, open vest that was the same yellow as an overcooked egg yolk. Her leotard was black, and her white gloves had been replaced with similarly dark fishnet sleeves that covered everything from her shoulders to her fingers. Her skirt had transformed into biker shorts in the same color as her vest, and her boots were dark as night and went above knee-length.

Most disconcerting, however, was the replacement's grin as she spoke, her voice low and chillingly amused. "Breaking the promises pledged, I am Poison Cocoa!"

Immediately, the other three CITs looked to Cure Campfire. "Campfire, what's going on?" asked Belay.

"I'm scared!" said Marshmallow, her lip quivering. "Where did Cocoa go?"

Poison Cocoa laughed. "Don't you understand, Cure Marshmallow? I am Cocoa! I just did the right thing… I let fear take over. You'll see in time that bravery is the denial of reality, and fear is the recognition. Once you let fear guide you… then you become transcendent. You become like me! You can use your own fears to make others as afraid as you are."

"I-I don't want to do that! Why would anyone?"

This girl who stood in place of Cure Cocoa took a step forward, holding out a hand. "Don't you want to live a life without lies? Where you can fully admit that you'll never be brave, and that being scared is the natural state of things? Let me help you to be fully honest about who you are. I can see who you are in your hearts… I don't even need a Fearful Bead!"

Cure Forest scowled. "No way can you!" she yelled as she darted forward to punch Poison Cocoa.

Poison ducked, then swept out a leg, tripping Forest and sprawling the green-haired magical girl onto the ground. Poison Cocoa stepped on top of her with one foot in a victorious pose, then looked down at her defeated attacker. "You," she said conversationally, "are terrified of monsters. That's why you foolheartedly attacked me. You see me as a monster now, and the worst kind, too. In the end, you can't stand to think of the kind of monster that you might become, right? Vampires, werewolves, Humglums. You always want to be Vita as you are right now. In the end, it isn't monsters you fear! It's that you're afraid of change!"

Watching, horrified, the three other Cure warriors saw tears well up in Cure Forest's eyes, and she limply stayed on the ground even as Poison removed her foot. She looked to all to be utterly defeated, and it was far from a pretty sight. "Brooke!" Marshmallow cried out. "Stop this! I don't know what's going on, but you're not Poison Cocoa!"

Poison glanced up, frowning. "Yes… and no. I am certainly Poison Cocoa, and I always have been. Of course, normally you would never see this part of me, but I initiated the change in myself to realize what the Precure and the Infinite Princess work to hide!"

"It's the bead," Marshmallow said, pleading with Cocoa, or perhaps with her partners, or even herself. "Everyone, it has to be the bead."

"Will it deactivate when she uses magic?" Belay asked Campfire.

Campfire shrugged in response. "I've never seen anything like this. How should I know?"

Poison Cocoa abandoned the defeated Cure Forest and walked slowly over to Cure Marshmallow. Marshmallow made no move to stop her, still pleading. "You can return to normal! Take my hand! We'll fight with you, Brooke!"

Reaching out clawed fingers, Poison Cocoa did take Marshmallow's hand, delicate as could be.

Then, her free hand grabbed Marshmallow's arm and twisted it painfully, sending Marshmallow sinking to the ground. "Oh, I can see your delicious, delicious fears as well, Marshmallow. You don't like losing friends, or even potential friends. Is everything you do so carefully crafted to gain sympathy and affection? Do you lie about who you are so you never have to be alone? Look at you now," she scoffed, "playing the leader so that they'll like you, even though you hate having the weight of leadership on your shoulders. What kind of counselor will you make? A fake one? Or will you finally give into the loneliness that you know is coming for you?"

Poison Cocoa dropped Marshmallow without fanfare, and weakly, Cure Marshmallow sank to her knees. "I'm sorry," she murmured. "It's true, isn't it? I'm sorry I'm not the leader that everyone expects from me."

Cure Campfire's eyes burned. "Belay, don't let her touch you. She's like…"

"Like a living Fearful Bead, but more powerful, harder to resist."

"Right."

Poison Cocoa grinned. "So smart," she said as she headed straight for Campfire. "I suppose, then, it's time for a game of tag? See how long you can outlast me!"

As Cure Campfire ran, unsure of what to do other than indulge the corrupted camper, she cast a glance at Belay. "Belay, we've got no choice but to beat her! We need to attack!"

"I'm not going to attack my friend!"

"There's no other way!"

Poison smiled as she raced to catch Campfire. Despite the horribly high heels on her boots, she jumped off trees and boulders, chasing after Campfire and catching her with ease. As Poison cradled Campfire's head, the counselor fighting against her with little progress, Poison spoke again of fears. "I'd never seen yours before. Wow, you're a bit of a loser, huh? Bears? And fire of course, but you spilled your whole backstory days ago. One thing you'd never admitted though, oh, that really sticks out. You never saw it, but you can imagine it clearly, right? I'm talking, of course, about dear old Amarantha's corpse, burned and scarred. Guess she isn't resting in peace."

As soon as she said that, Campfire stopped fighting, slumping forward and grabbing for her knees as tears rolled down her face.

Poison turned to face Belay. "Your turn. Come give me a hug?" she asked, and for a moment she looked to be her same cute self, the girl that Belay couldn't help be friends with, the Precure who she wanted to build more memories with. It wasn't fair to leave her waiting; it wasn't fair to be alone.

 _Maybe it is time for me to give in. It's not what the others would want, but I don't want to have to face Humglums on my own. I don't want my friends to be alone, either. Mallory, especially… I don't want her to live her fears._ Biting her lip, still unsure of her decisions, Cure Belay turned to embrace Poison Cocoa.

"Don't do it, Belay!"

Poison and Belay looked up, trying to find the source of the voice that spoke. They located it in the form of a twenty-something year old woman with flowing silver hair and a magical battle outfit that was silver from her blouse to her lacy socks, which were covered in delicate designs resembling stars. She looked down upon the pair with a stern sort of determined anger, then unclipped a star-shaped pin from her hair and threw it upwards. "Starlight Staff!" she cried, and the hairpin transformed into a long baton that must have been three times the length of Belay's own weapon. The woman pointed it at Poison.

"Don't!" said Belay.

"Yes, don't interrupt me as I show this girl true fear," said Poison with a smirk, though it looked somewhat worried. "I'll take care of you next."

"No, don't because this is… was… _is_? Agh, she's my friend!" said Belay.

The mysterious Cure jumped down from her tree, front-flipping as she did and still managing to land solidly on her feet. "We have to purify the bead inside her heart. It shouldn't hurt her, in theory."

"In _theory_?"

Seeming to judge the newcomer a bigger threat, Poison shifted her attentions. "You think I need _purified?_ Do you think I need to change? Don't you understand that I'm proud of who I am? I'm powerful, and now all you loser Precure can see it. Even when you pretend to be my friend, I know I'm pitied. Don't try to take away who I am."

She swiped at the mystery Cure with one hand, her claws seeming even sharper than before. The Cure jumped back.

"Don't try to remove me from what people see as a flaw." Her other hand shout out, but the Cure danced out of the way again.

Poison Cocoa cried out, her open mouth revealing white fangs, her claws extended and raised above her head. "And _don't_ try to tell me I can't be dangerous, powerful, and glorious."

The mystery Cure jumped back and raised her staff, pointing it menacingly at Poison Cocoa. "All you're saying is true, every word. You are dangerous, and powerful. You are glorious. All girls are, no matter what people say. Don't turn into a monster, Brooke Hudson, because monsters deserve less respect than girls." She paused, then cocked her head towards Belay. "Are you going to help, or not?"

Belay considered the harm it could do, then looked into Poison Cocoa's eyes. There was no sign of her friend there. "Yeah. I'm coming," she said, and ran the few steps to meet the mystery Cure, summoning her weapon on the way. "Breezy Baton!"

The two twirled their weapons and pointed them. "Let's hope this works," muttered the silver Cure. "Fears be banished!"

Cure Belay joined in for the final words of the finisher. "Courageous Finale!"

The magic hit Poison Cocoa in the chest, and magically, a Courage Bead emerged from her heart. As the appearance of Poison Cocoa faded, leaving only Brooke, the girl in question fell to the ground, and Belay rushed over to her. "Brooke!" she cried.

"She'll be fine. This isn't the first time something like this has happened," said the other Cure, though she looked concerned. "Normally, they turn into weird sorts of Humglums, not like a Color War general."

"Is that what it was?" asked Belay with a frown, looking up towards her rescuer. "What do you know? Who are you?"

The Cure shook her head. "You know way too much for a camper," she said with a snort. "You and your friends are very brave, going against everyone… even the camp director herself. And Biddy, well… I'd say she was shortsighted, but honestly, she's so passionate she forgets to see what's right in front of her sometimes, it'd be redundant to say it when it's obvious. And, well… I don't plan to tell her, or anyone who might pass this on, what she isn't open to hearing."

"What?"

However, the older Cure only curtsied and smiled. "Take care, Cure Belay, and know that while I'm fine with you doing as you're doing in secret, if you're found out, I'll be forced to take action against you. Goodbye."

"Hey, wait…"

"Oh, and that Bead should be safe now."

"Please, just answer me one thing…"

Too late. She was gone.

* * *

The others began to wake up within minutes. "What happened?" asked Marshmallow as she shifted back to Mallory. "One moment we transformed, and the next…"

"Ugh, did we get beaten?" said Vita, right after detransforming.

"No, there's no sign of that," said Biddy.

Belay let herself become Harper once again, and bit her lip. The last words of the Cure she'd met hung on her mind… _while I'm fine with you doing as you're doing in secret, if you're found out, I'll be forced to take action against you_. There was no way she could tell anyone, especially not in front of Biddy, and at least not that part.

Still, she couldn't resist a single question, something floating on her mind. "Hey, Biddy, what's Amelie's Cure form?"

"Cure Luciole? She's dressed in gold, with tiny wings on her back. Her hair is in two braids. Why do you ask?"

"Curiosity. So, you really don't remember what happened?"

"Did Amelie show up?" Biddy's eyes were wide. "She can't have found out about…"

"She didn't," said Harper with honesty. "We uh. We beat the bad guy. There was more power than I'd ever seen before. I guess something knocked you all out."

"Did we ever find out what the bead did?" asked Brooke as she slowly got up from the ground. She picked up the item in question to find that the splotches, previously all sorts of colors, were now shades of silver and white with reflective crystalline accents.

Harper bit her lip. "Um. No."

* * *

"So," said Cobalt with a sassy grin, "I heard you failed. Your noob got beat quick, huh?"

Cardinal shook his head. "Did I ever say that small, rookie Precure would be our new general? Think beyond the obvious, child. She was nothing but a pawn. However, she set the stage for our real target." His eyes gleamed as he licked his lips in thought. "Lies sprout from fear, and this incident is something no person could be truly honest about. Our time to break this group apart and take one for our own is at hand… and my plan is only now beginning."

* * *

 _ED: Summer Camp Can Can_

* * *

 _Next time on Care Package Precure:_

Brooke: What's that?

Harper: Looks like an invitation... but to what?

Vita: No way! You're invited to the coolest group in camp. Besides the Care Package Precure, of course.

Mallory: W-what? I want a chance to shine like this too!

Biddy: Maybe another time. It's another girl's turn to get this chance, next time on Care Package Precure!

All: We'll conquer your fears all together now!


	9. Ever Ever: The Not-So-Secret Society

_OP: Magical Story~Time_

* * *

Samantha di Angelo knocked nervously on the door that led into the Director's Cabin. Sitting on a hill smack dab in the middle of Camp Breezy Bridge, the small, rustic cottage normally looked cheerfully inviting, but with midnight fast approaching, the moon and trees cast ominous shadows over its roof, walls, and curtained windows. Sam looked around nervously as she waited for a response, and almost jumped when the door was opened.

Camp Director A. Eric, usually known only by her last name, laughed at Sam's anxious antics. Eric was as spartan and boyish as her favored name, and so her giggles didn't make Sam ease up any. It wasn't until the director gave a genuine smile and motioned her friend in that Sam relaxed. As the pair walked into the combined living room and kitchen, Sam began the conversation. "Kinda creepy out there, huh, Eric?"

Eric nodded. "With everything that's going on? Yeah, the weather isn't helping. At least we haven't had anything we couldn't handle yet. There's not been a single Humglum that hasn't been vanquished."

Sam wanted to hide under her mountain of thick blonde hair, cascading in curls over the sides of her glasses, her shoulders, even down to the small of her back. She felt herself shrink, wishing there was a better way to hide in the sparsely-furnished cabin. "Well, ma'am, that's actually what I came to talk about."

Eric sighed and sat down, removing her baseball cap to reveal her auburn-colored buzz cut, the autumnal color contrasting nicely with her medium-brown skin. "Yeah. To be honest, I kind of expected that."

Growing even more pale than normal, Sam tried to think of how to start. "Well, uh, um, as you said! There's been nothing we can't handle. No harm for the kids, none at all. We've defeated quite a few of them easily. Just one thing."

"One thing."

"Well…" Sam looked away, blushing. She didn't want to be the one to say this. She wished that she had thought to delegate it. Still, it probably couldn't have been helped. Bad news was the business of the assistant camp director, and that was a title that Sam (usually) held with great pride. "We have suspicions that we've not defeated all of the Humglums formed."

"But they have been defeated."

Oh god, it sounded like Eric knew. Sam braced herself, but the camp director didn't say anything more, so there was no choice but to continue. "Well, yes. However, _we_ aren't defeating them. In addition, we have a camper, an Emmeline from the kindergarten and first grade program, who is swearing up and down that she saw new Precure. All staff are trained on preventative measures so kids don't know what's happening, so that's already a red flag, but we also recovered an autograph from her." Digging into her pocket, Sam grabbed and displayed a piece of paper with a cute doodle of an unknown magical girl. "It's from a Cure Belay. There's no records of such a Cure currently or ever on staff, ma'am."

"Cut it with the 'ma'am,' Sam. Come on, stop looking like I'm going to bite you." Eric managed another smile, but it was weaker than before. "I'm not going to beat you up or anything. If you listen to the gossip, you've heard I can't even become Precure. They're saying it's because I'm fearless, right?"

Sam's eyes narrowed. "That's a load of bird poopy, and you know it, Eric. I don't see why you don't just transform and save them all the bother of wondering."

"Staying civilian suits me," Eric said simply. Sam might have imagined the small shudder.

"Well, while they're thinking it's because you're not afraid, maybe it works. One of these days, though, someone's going to wonder if you're just too afraid to try to save anyone." Sam put her hands on her hips, then immediately moved them to cover her mouth. What was she saying?

Eric tilted her head. "Don't worry about being polite. Continue. I deserve to hear it."

Sam bit her lip and nodded. "Um. Well, I've been assistant camp director for five years now…"

"I wondered why you didn't apply for the camp director job when Miriam decided to step down."

"I wasn't ready. I'm far from ready. I have so much to learn," said Sam honestly. "Still, I think I've learned a lot, and I know all camp directors are scared of one thing, if only one."

"Oh?"

"You're afraid you can't keep your campers and staff safe. That fear is unavoidable if you're any good at your job at all."

Eric smiled, but it was tight, grim. "Then maybe I'm too good at my job, because my fear is that I've already failed."

* * *

Breakfast on Monday morning found the girls in CIT shoveling through a mountain of scrambled eggs and several pieces of bacon each. Even Brooke had to continue to go back into the kitchen for allergen-free food time and time again. "I'm just so hungry!" said Mallory between bites. "Yesterday was super busy."

"Yeah. I mean, who would guess Amelie would quiz us on camp rules only an hour after getting back in," complained Vita.

"Well, I meant the other thing, but…"

Vita soured. "I can't remember what you're talking about, so I'm going to ignore it."

"I just wish we knew," said Brooke with a frown.

A couple seats away, Delcine tilted her head at the Care Package team. "Guys, you're acting weird, nothing like your normal selves. What did Biddy tell you yesterday? None of you are in trouble, are you? Harper, you're not even eating."

Vita, Brooke, and Mallory looked to Harper. It was true; she was moving around her first serving of eggs and bacon with barely any making it to her lips. "Um, friend?" asked Mallory. "Are you sick? Should we get Biddy or Amelie?"

Harper smiled weakly and took a bite of dry toast that she hadn't even put butter on yet. "Absolutely fine. Just tired. Not awake yet. That's it."

Brooke looked concerned but simply said, "Well, you should try to wake up, cause your sister is coming this way."

Mallory looked behind Harper and herself to see what looked like Harper's pop star alternate universe self coming towards them. "Haruharu!" exclaimed the newcomer, and her lips shined with freshly-applied gloss. Despite being at camp, her hair was as perfect as Harper's, though her bangs were swept in the opposite direction. Darkly lined eyelids fluttered as she hugged Harper tightly, then she pulled back and glared at the CIT sternly. "I've heard some things."

Harper sighed. "What have you heard?"

"You've been sullen and not enjoying yourself since yesterday. I suppose you told everyone you're tired, too? That's always your excuse. What, did you get in trouble? That's what the rumors say."

"I didn't get in trouble, Mari," Harper said. She straightened herself up and took a bite of eggs, as though these actions would disprove the accusations.

Mallory grinned. "Aha! So it's not just us who have noticed."

"The whole camp has, actually," said Delcine.

Brooke bit her lip. "Everyone's really worried, Harper."

"Or should we say, Haruharu?" said Vita with a mischievous grin.

Harper blushed. "Only Mariko calls me Haruharu," she protested. "By the way… Mariko, you know Vita, Delcine, and Brooke. Sitting next to me is my new friend Mallory. This is her first year here, she went to a different camp before, like us. Mallory, this is my twin sister, Mariko Marin Hoshikaze"

"Nice to meet you Mallory!" chirped Mariko. "Be good to my little sister and her friends."

"Of course! I really enjoy being in CIT with them."

"I'm sure!" Mariko's smile was almost blinding… she really felt like a celebrity, even in the middle of the woods. If Harper was a model, Mariko was a Hollywood music starlet, and she looked as if she enjoyed every second of it. "CIT looks super boring to me, but with the right people, I'm sure it could be interesting. Anyway, it was nice meeting you, but I actually had more of a purpose than social visits. I came to deliver a message!"

Harper seemed to perk up a bit. "A what?"

Mariko slipped her sister a small package wrapped in magazine pages. The entire thing seemed to be hastily made in arts and crafts. "Don't open it here. Wait until rest time, I'd say. Oh, and… congratulations!"

"Huh?" said Harper, but Mariko was already halfway back to her table, where she sat with the rest of an urban adventure program.

Vita's eyes glimmered. "Oooh, we have rest hour right after breakfast! It's so good, too, I think I know what this is, and you won't want to wait to find out!"

"I'm so excited too," admitted Mallory. "Your sister is so cool and mysterious."

"Not really," said Harper with her first smile in hours. "You just have to realize her motivation is to be both very cute and very famous. Everything she says and does becomes clear once you learn that."

* * *

For all her maturity, when faced with mystery, Harper was like a five-year-old on Christmas morning. The moment she reached the cabin, she plopped down on Brooke's bed… the closest one to the door… and tore open the package. Mallory sat next to her, leaning her head on Harper's shoulder and watching. Vita, obviously knowing what was going on, leaned smugly against the wall, and Delcine and Brooke hit the floor excitedly. Even the other CITs seemed curious. Brandy lingered nearby instead of going directly to her bed, and Kaitlin looked up from the chessboard she was readying to watch.

After tearing off the magazine paper, Harper opened the box to find a carefully drawn shrinky-dink pin. It bared passing resemblance to the brooches that staff and CITs alike wore; the clover shape was the same, and it had the same attachments that made it able to be worn in hair, on clothes, or attached to a backpack. However, the pin was pink and purple, with the initials _SCR_ handwritten in a calligraphy-like style with a black permanent marker. Harper stared at it for a second before frowning. "I have no clue what this is, or why Mariko would give it to me. Besides, my initials are HHH, not SCR."

"It stands for the Sisterhood of the Clover Rose," said Bing as she passed on her way outside, Sofía clinging to her arm.

"The what?"

Vita was beaming, jumping up and down, done with looking cool. "The Sisterhood of the Clover Rose! Harper! Don't tell me you haven't heard of it! It's the most popular secret society in Camp Breezy Bridge!"

"If it's a secret, how would I have known about it?" asked Harper, her face contorting in confusion.

Vita rolled her eyes, but otherwise didn't answer. "Twice a week, they select one of the older campers to join them, and bestow them a homemade pin to mark their membership. As long as you have your pin, you have full membership and voting rights within the Sisterhood."

Mallory leaned in, her eyes wide. "What kind of things do they do?"

"They initiate new people! Whenever someone does something awesome, or otherwise catches the eyes of multiple members, they're selected for initiation. Harper being down must have really put her in the public eye. The Sisterhood really acts fast, huh?"

"I think what Mallory means is, what's the point?" Harper smiled a little, but seemed still a bit dazed. Mallory set her head back down on Harper's shoulder.

"I told you!" Vita grinned. "They initiate new people!"

"That's it?"

"That's it!"

Harper took a deep breath, and Mallory lifted her head up just in time to see the frozen smile Harper made when she thought something was utterly ridiculous. "I don't know if this… sisterhood… is necessarily for _me_."

Brooke frowned. "Harper! It's an honor! You have to accept it!"

Mallory nodded. Something about the secret society did seem dumb. Still, she couldn't help but find it intriguing. There was inherently something a little bit romantic about being chosen for a secret society, however pointless, and apparently not too secret, it was. Actually, that did beg a question. "Vita, how do you so much about this? Are you a member?"

Vita's grin turned sheepish. "Um, well, they picked me two years ago. I lost the pin, though, so officially I'm not a member anymore, cause you need to have it to count."

"Can I just give it to you, then? If it's not going to have a point or count on my resume, I don't really care."

"No! You have to promise me you'll keep it!" Vita's voice was filled with fervor.

"If it'll make you all happy, fine. It's not doing me any harm, I guess." Harper rolled her eyes, but stuck the pin in her backpack.

Mallory's eyes followed it until it was out of sight. At that moment, her curiosity officially got the best of her. The Sisterhood chose people twice a week. She was going to be the next girl chosen.

* * *

 _EYECATCH 1: A brief montage of Vita moments: snuggling up to Delcine, performing karaoke badly, eating pancakes, and doing a high kick as Cure Forest._

 _EYECATCH 2: Myfanwy and Hestia fly in circles, then fall down. They land on a grassy patch, where Vita has set up a picnic that is only full of sweets._

* * *

Mondays were the official adventure day for the CITs, and today there was no fear to be found. The low ropes course wasn't any more than a foot or two off the ground at the highest. There was no need for a harness, only for the campers who weren't on the elements to act as spotters, their hands formed into soft spoon shapes and their legs bent, one in front of the other.

Mallory found it a pity that Harper hated heights; the fashionable girl danced lithely across the low-hanging y-shaped tightrope, using her dexterity and good balance to propel her along. Mallory, who favored momentum and speed, had almost ran across it, and now clung to the center wire.

"Okay!" said Biddy from the sidelines. "Now you two have to go on the same rope and get to the tree, okay?"

With her free hand, Mallory fistpumped. "No problem! I could cartwheel across this baby, no problem."

"Please don't," said Harper. Now that she was up close, Mallory could see that she looked nervous, perhaps a little dizzy. Even the eighteen inches between herself and the ground seemed to be too much.

"Okay, I'll be a little tamer," Mallory decided. She looked to the onlooking crowd. Biddy and Amelie were doing most of the facilitating, but a couple members of adventure staff were also watching. The CITs were all there, and joined with them was a small arts and crafts program of six girls. _Any one of them could be a member of the Sisterhood of the Clover Rose,_ Mallory decided. _So I need to do my best to become amazing, to be the talk of the camp!_

She let go of the rope and took a step backwards onto the last part of the tightrope. "Come on, Harper, we have this!" she said as she took another step backwards, then another, then another, until she was halfway across the tightrope.

Then, she took another step, but her foot faltered and she began to fall. Arms outstretched, she struggled to regain balance, but to no avail. Forward, backwards, forward again she wobbled, before falling right into the waiting arms of her fellow CITs.

Except…

As Mallory hit the ground, she registered that the CIT who would have broken her fall had stepped backwards instinctively. She looked up at the girl, Jasmine, just as Jasmine looked at the sprawled-out Mallory with a horrified expression. "I'm sorry!" she said. "I panicked!"

* * *

It took ten minutes, two first aid trained staff members, and Harper calmly stepping off the tightrope ("That's it, I told you why heights were an all-around bad idea") before Mallory's nose stopped bleeding. She sat next to Biddy, away from everyone else, and watched the rest of the group continue on the low ropes course. "What were you doing, showing off?" asked the counselor, shaking her head. "You don't have enhanced balance, not in this form, anyway. And Precure or not, you never have eyes in the back of your head."

"I've done it before, at Camp Woodwake," protested Mallory.

Biddy raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, so I had a harness, but it was thirty feet off the ground, and I only fell off once, okay? I thought a short little tightrope like that would be easy peasy!"

Sighing, Biddy placed a hand on Mallory's shoulder. "That's not like you, Mallie. I understand that you like to do tricks. I know adventure's your favorite thing, and after going to an adventure camp, you don't find it challenging here. I see it in your face every time you transform. You love the adventure, the adrenaline. But I've never, ever seen you sacrifice the needs or comfort of a friend to go and get that feeling. Why did you do it this time?"

Looking at the counselor's face let Mallory know that the real reason would never fly. It had taken too long for Biddy to even trust her with her own CIT pin, regardless of the magic or the reason. She didn't know what would happen if Biddy even got an inkling she wasn't mature enough to handle being Precure.

"I just wanted to try it," she said defensively. She threw the last bloody tissue into the trashcan Amelie had placed near her. "Now, can I please go and try the rest of the low ropes course?"

Biddy sighed again, not buying it. "Just be careful, and don't do any more backwards tricks, okay?"

* * *

Low ropes time was followed by arts and crafts, where the girls made friendship bracelets. Mallory attempted a complex design and got her old Camp Woodwake bracelets on her wrist tied up in the process. After that, a game of Wax Museum went wrong after she tried a headstand, once again flopping to the ground right before the eyes of the person who was "it." By the time dinner came, it wasn't just to show off that Mallory was on her fifth taco and heading for the year's record.

"These aren't even real tacos," she said between numbers five and six as she scooped cheddar cheese onto her plate. "My parents would throw a fit, but I mean, they taste fine to me."

"I thought your family was from Spain?" asked Vita.

"Papa's from Spain. Mama's from Mexico," corrected Mallory as she raised taco number six to her mouth.

It took only that and number seven before her stomach started to hurt. Quietly, she set her fork down and stared at the table. So her plans were going horribly wrong. That wasn't a big deal, was it? Harper being super happy hadn't made her a member of the Sisterhood, it was when stuff went wrong for her that she became a member. Perhaps by sacrificing her fun today, she would catch someone's eye.

On the way back to the cabin for official CIT training, Mallory clutched her stomach. Beside her, Brooke looked down on the shortest Precure, obviously worried. "Is there anything I can do for you?"

"N-no, I'm fine!" lied Mallory. "I just need to keep being really, really awesome. Then I'll be great."

"Uh-huh," said Brooke, but she sounded unsure.

As Mallory and Brooke began to linger behind the rest of the CITs, another program passed them. From the appearance of Mariko towards the front, it was clear that they were the urban travel program; from the duffel bags and suitcases they held, it was clear they were heading out of camp on one of their overnights in the city. As they passed, a tall girl with long blonde hair leaned over to Mallory. "Hey, you're Mallory, right? The one who keeps getting herself into trouble today? Are you okay?"

Mallory gave a weak thumbs up. The girl didn't look too convinced, but continued on. When she was out of earshot, Mallory turned to Brooke. "Look, people are noticing me!"

"For the wrong reasons. Mallie, I think you're taking it too far. Please don't hurt yourself anymore," Brooke asked. Her soft face was concerned.

"Don't worry, I'm sure by tomorrow we'll all be fine, and I'll have my Sisterhood pin."

" _That's really what this is about?"_ asked a voice from behind them. Brooke and Mallory turned to face Biddy, who stood with folded arms, rolling her eyes. "Vita said something to the tune of that, but I never thought… well, I should have, I've never known her to lie, only really exaggerate… come on, girls, let's get Mallory some water."

"Water?"

"It's a summer camp staff secret. Water cures everything, and if it or calamine lotion doesn't, you need to get the kid to the nurse. Come on, you two. And Mallory, maybe you should let me know why you thought being ridiculous would get you into the Sisterhood of the Clover Rose."

* * *

Mallory did feel better, even after Brooke rejoined the main group. It only took a glass of water and a little time before the pain in her stomach subsided into a small discomfort, right as she finished her explanation. "…and I guess I just tried to outdo Harper, which was kind of hard, cause she's really awesome, I mean, but I kept doing it wrong anyway."

Biddy laughed, obviously against her better judgement, because she immediately stopped. "Harper didn't get initiated because she was feeling down, or not fully, anyway. She got initiated because she's doing a good job being exactly who she is."

"Wait. Am I not?"

"Oh, I said that wrong. You're not today, I mean, but normally… oh, I suppose I better just show you." Biddy pulled out her own Clover Rose pin and a notebook. "I'm the one who makes the final induction decision, you know."

"You?" Mallory's eyes widened. "But… Biddy, you're a staff member! I thought it was only older campers!"

"What do you think happens when the members turn eighteen? The rules say you're in as long as you have your pin." The counselor smirked and waved the notebook. "This is a list of all the people members have submitted for consideration." She brought the list to Mallory's eye level, and Mallory blinked, just as Biddy confirmed what she thought she saw. "You and Harper were tied. Harper's been having a hard time, though, so I sent today's pin out to her. You were already going to get it next time."

"Really?"

"Well, yeah, but now I'm not sure you realize what the organization's about."

Mallory shrugged. "Success? Coolness? Maturity?"

"Wrong," said Biddy flatly. Then, she gave a small smile. "It's about fun. It's a joke, and everyone knows it. It cheers people up and lets people know they're included. Everyone becomes a member sometime or another; it's why we have so many initiation days. The Sisterhood is a proud Breezy Bridge tradition, but that doesn't mean we have to take it seriously, or we have to do dumb things to get in."

Biting her lip, Mallory looked away. "I understand. I'll wait my turn."

"No. You won't. Mallory, this is yours."

As Mallory looked up, Biddy held out a handmade pin, the letters a little more lopsided than Harper's and the colors slightly different. "Really?"

"You deserve it. You may have screwed up today, but you're normally a good friend, a good Precure, a good leader. You'll be a great staff member someday, but today you're a great camper. Congrats on joining the Clover Rose, Mallie."

Mallory smiled. "Thanks!"

* * *

Eric sat at her desk inside her cabin and thought about what Sam had said. It rang heavy on her heart, the idea that she might someday be distrusted, but she firmly believed a Cure identity wasn't something to be flaunted around. She used it if someone was in real, perhaps fatal danger and nobody else had a handle on it. She didn't transform just to scout around, nor to fight battles already being fought by twenty others. It wasn't needed, wasn't practical, and only served to confuse things.

She thought about the camper Cures. That was no surprise. There was plenty of record of campers finding out about the Precure. One or two every few years was containable, and even served to create better staff. Eric herself had found out as a child, once upon a time. The issue wasn't that, the issue was that they were fighting. Eric was well aware of it, but if more than just herself and Sam found out… that would be the issue.

Eric reached into her pocket and stroked the five-pointed brooch inside of it, trying to gather strength even in civilian form. Not Precure strength, but rather the kind one needed to delicately and kindly lead a staff of sixty young women with love and wisdom.

Perhaps those two kinds of strength weren't so different. She squeezed the star in her pocket as tight as she could without the points poking her painfully. The thought made her smile.

* * *

 _ED: Summer Camp Can Can_


	10. Precure Eight? A Day in the Life of CITs

**AN: Welcome to a special episode of Care Package Precure! This episode walks an odd line between canon and noncanon, due to the references below. Those familiar with other fanseries know I've been referencing MissMelli's Spooky! Pretty Cure, Nexus Schwarz's Mythical Pretty Cure! and the semi-crossover between me and my friend Tonniwott's Gain Tempo Precure. Today these crossover friends get a chance to shine, and while the events are canon for CPPC, I ask you to think of this chapter and any subsequent chapters featuring these lovelies as AU versions of the characters. That said, there are planned crossovers with CPPC and the REAL versions of some of these kids in the works, so please stay tuned! Enjoy the chapter, and if you offered your characters for use in this verse, please consider that they're probably staff and don't show up... yet. Thanks!**

* * *

Eric paced the length of her small cabin over and over as she turned Sam's declaration from two nights earlier over and over in her mind. _Camper Cures._ She almost smiled. How she wished she could have been one, after meeting her own idol, Cure Rainyday, almost twenty years ago. She wasn't the only one, either. It wasn't common knowledge to most of the staff, but Eric at least was well aware of Biddy Hadyn's own encounter with a certain Cure Stargazer. Encounters were fine, even in the spirit of camp, as long as they were in moderation. Girls needed to know that magic existed. Girls needed to know that they were safe and protected. Girls needed to know that they could be amazing one day.

Still, that did not mean they had to be gallivanting around, using this magic on their own before it was their time. It was certainly a problem, as was the fact that they seemed to use this to more or less clean up the messes of full staff members.

With a sigh and a smile, Eric knew she would have to do something about it… but it was far from the first thing on her list. The life of a camp director was filled with problem, after problem, after problem. She had to inspect the kitchen, to do performance reviews, and then she needed to think about programming for the next year. Tomorrow she had a meeting with some people in the Northeastern Camp Club about accreditation standards. The next day… well, she didn't want to think of that.

A couple days playing among (usually) competent, caring staff? It wouldn't kill four or so (at the _most_ ) underage superheroes, especially because they seemed to be CITs.

Now, if it was the entire CIT program? That would have been an urgent issue. Eric laughed at the thought, though: there's no way it would happen without her knowledge.

* * *

 _Special OP: Run Run Fun ~ Pretty Cure Eight_

* * *

"What is this?" asked Amelie coldly as she stared at the too-young Precure warriors in front of her. They shuffled around on the same beach, each looking phenomenally guilty, a product of being caught red handed.

The girls had been doing their normal routine: defeating a Humglum, collecting the Courage Bead, making sure everything was fine, and most of all, hiding from the staff… something they apparently hadn't done very well. One of the girls, Cure Garuda, gulped nervously, and swallowed hard. "Um… it's not what it looks like?"

"We're cosplaying?" suggested another, a Cure Grandmaster.

Amelie took a deep breath, her hands moving in a relaxed motion as she tried to calm herself. Then, she looked around the beach at the eight magical girls stationed there. Considering that Biddy had left with four of the CITs for their own observation, this must have been the rest of the program. "I'm going to assume you're my campers," she said slowly. "I'm going to assume you never meant for me to see that you… _somehow…_ became Precure. I'm also going to _pretend_ I never saw this. But if I ever, _and I do mean ever_ , see any of you transformed again, you're going to wish I hadn't. Now. I'm walking away for five minutes, and when I come back, I better not see any Precure warriors."

True to her word, she left, and Cure Witch let out a huff as she crossed her arms and stuck her tongue out, aimed at nothing but her purple outfit and matching violet fishnet gloves. "Well, this sucks."

"Y'know," said Cure Grandmaster nervously as she pulled on her roughly made pink and grey belt that held the two Courage Beads she has accumulated, "She said it was only if she saw us. We just got a little careless, that's all. Next time we'll be sneakier."

"If there is a next time." Cure Cerberus, decked out in red, rolled her eyes. "How were we to know she was going to come back from break early? How will we _ever_ know?"

The group was silent. Then, realizing they only had a couple minutes left, each detransformed in a flash, leaving eight normal girls in their place… and not all of them were CITs. "I guess I better get going," said a tall blonde girl with a sympathetic grin. "She thinks we're all her campers, and it'd probably be worse for us all if she realized we weren't. Come on, Skye, Ast, let's get back to our groups."

"See you, Fay!" cried the former Cure Witch, now Sofía. Beside her, Bing grinned and nodded her own goodbye.

Kaitlin, or Cure Grandmaster to those in the know, waved a little. "Goodbye, Ast!"

"Later, Skye," called Brandy and Jasmine. Brandy blew a kiss and winked at Skye's frown and deep scarlet blush.

* * *

"Well," said Brandy as she flopped onto her bed, "that didn't go so well."

Jasmine frowned. "The observation? Or the Precure thing?"

"Well, both, but mostly the observation. So a tiny little monster attacks a group of third graders, and they start crying, and the staff comes back and we're the reason why to them? And now we have to go watch a different group? Ugh."

"At least we get a couple hours off," said Bing with a shrug.

"I don't want a couple hours off!" Brandy threw a couple punches at the air. "I didn't come to camp to sit in my cabin and relax, I came to do stuff! Specifically, I came to learn to be a counselor, even if I didn't think that meant becoming a part time superhero."

Sofía gave Brandy a slightly disbelieving look. "It's more than that," she said, sounding ever so slightly offended.

"Like what?"

"Like… well, I don't know, but it's important."

Kaitlin looked up from her own bed, where she had already set up the pieces on her magnetic travel chessboard. "Are you saying there's some cosmic meaning?"

Sofía shrugged, but Jasmine took up the fight. "I'm not sure. Do you ever think about what Precure means to you, though?"

The room was silent. They had, once upon a time, on their first observation day. Faced with a camper in trouble, somehow their CIT brooches had responded, and when their three friends from other programs had wandered in on the scene while heading back from the bathroom, they too had managed to transform. Deciding a group of eight was too large, they'd divided into subteams.

Kaitlin clutched her brooch tight. Game Tempo Precure may have been the smallest group… just her and her new friend Ast, almost the leftovers after the formation of the other teams… but they had something in common, something to protect. Kaitlin thought of the games she learned at camp, silly and childish at first, but full of strategy if you let them be. The difference between those and her favored game of chess was in working together. Chess was one on one, with whoever sat across from you as your opponent. Precure had opened her up to a way of looking at that person with love, as a friend.

On Brandy's bed, she and Jasmine met eyes. Adventurous Brandy had always been fascinated with the camp legends of what mythical beings existed out in the Breezy Bridge woods, and friendship dictated that Jasmine follow in all sorts of explorations. When Skye joined, the team had not become less adventurous, but only more balanced. Now, their search for the mythical was smarter, cooler, and most of all, more fun. Precure allowed them to see the woods… and themselves… a whole new way.

Leaning against Bing, Sofía smiled as she remembered the scary stories she, Bing, and Fay had been told every summer around the campfire. Those stories had thrilled her and her two girlfriends time and time again, and had allowed them to see fear as something that maybe, wasn't that scary… heck, perhaps it was even something fun. Though being a magical girl could be frightening sometimes, it too was also a good time. She never wanted it to stop, and she said as much. "I don't want this to end."

From the looks on the others faces, they agreed with her. Jasmine was the only one to speak up, however: "Still, even if Amelie can make us quit Precure, she can't take away that fact that we already were."

There was silence for a moment, then Kaitlin quietly added something. "If we have to… stop… well… I have an idea for something we should do."

The girls took deep breaths, smiled shakily, and listened.

* * *

The second observation went better than the first one. Faced with middle schoolers not much younger than they were, crying, fighting, and fear was nowhere near as likely. Still, there were challenges, particularly with the obviously forming cliques.

"I don't want to go over there," muttered a girl dressed all in black as a counselor named Eleia, Jasmine, and Kaitlin stood around her. "They all hate me."

"Why do you think they hate you?" asked Eleia. Behind her kind face, there was an obvious sort of exasperation that Jasmine desperately hoped the girl couldn't read.

Crossed arms, a snarl, and a roll of lined brown eyes met Eleia's question. It was a moment before she spoke. "When I write or draw in my notebook, they steal it from me and ask questions. They say what I'm drawing is weird, or even scary. I mean, it is," amended the girl, "but _good._ I don't care if they get scared."

"Can I see your notebook?"

"Only if you're not going to be a big baby about it."

"I assure you, I'm the farthest thing from a big baby," said Eleia with a smile.

The girl reached into her notebook and dug out a lined book. Even the cover was doodled on, decorated with band names in unreadable fonts and pictures depicting void monsters with multiple faces and arms as best as they could. Eleia turned to the first page and began to read. "'Chemical war. Gas. Blind, choke, burn, blister, kill. Machine guns. Rapid fire bullets… aircraft… planes… zeppelins.' Abbey, what is this poem?" Kaitlin and Jasmine easily caught that Eleia looked a little bit scared, and a whole lot of concerned.

The girl, Abbey, laughed. "Um. That's actually my World History I notes. We were talking about weaponry in World War I. I have a really good memory for things people say, so I don't take many notes at all, and they usually look like weird minimalist poems."

Eleia flipped a page, and this one didn't have an obviously plausible explanation. A horrible monster, drawn as realistically as a monster could, took up both sides of the notebook. The spiral between the pages had been incorporated as part of the art, creating a surprisingly straight spine for such a twisted beast. Teeth, eyes, and blood covered its body. Eleia turned to notebook to Abbey. "And this?"

"It's a monster."

"I see that. Why are you showing the girls things like this?"

Abbey's lip twisted upwards. "Aren't you listening? I'm not! They take my notebook and leaf through it. I wouldn't show them this in a million years!" She turned heel and began storming off in the opposite direction from the rest of the group.

Peering at the cover, Jasmine caught something. "You know, it's hard to read, but I think one of these words says 'Dream Journal,' Eleia."

"Does it?" Eleia flipped it over. After ten or twenty seconds of squinting, she nodded. "It looks like that. I suppose when I give this back, I'll have to apologize. You can't help what you dream, even if it is kind of, ah. Messed up."

She started to follow Abbey over to the trees, when a cry rang out. " _I'm scared_!" Eleia froze, eyes wide, and then she abruptly turned and waved her hand over the group. Jasmine and Kaitlin had seen this before and knew what was going on; they pretended to freeze, not even letting themselves blink. Before their eyes, Eleia transformed, her arms moving gracefully like a ballet dancer as she did. When she emerged from the light of transformation, she curtseyed, spun around, and announced to no one in particular: "The Cure with a song of knowledge! I'm Cure Wisdom!"

Cure Wisdom ran into the woods, past Abbey. As soon as she was gone, all the CITs in the area stopped and smiled wearily, gathering together. "We know how that is, don't we," joked Brandy with a halfhearted grin.

"Yeah, and we know what's coming next. I think I'm getting too genre savvy," said Sofía, sticking her tongue out a little bit. "Any moment now, and we'll see…"

"Ohohohoho!"

* * *

 _EYECATCH 1: Fay, Sofía, Kaitlin, and Jasmine sit on pillows, each in their pajamas. They're talking enthusiastically. It's obviously the cutest slumber party in history... until Brandy, Ast, Bing, and Skye burst in with their own pillows, ready to destroy in an ultimate sleepover pillow battle._

 _EYECATCH 2: Brandy, Ast, Bing, and Skye are winning a game of gaga easily, and even showing off a little for kicks... until Fay, Sofía, Kaitlin, and Jasmine take the lead within a few seconds, smiling as they do._

* * *

"Oh look," said Jasmine dryly. "It's Xanthe. Right on schedule, of course."

The woman curtseyed, her yellow dress flaring out, its old and off-white lace catching on the twigs of the tree she stood on. "Well, well. If it isn't the Pretty Cure Eight! Cobalt tells me you got into a tad bit of trouble earlier, and so I decided to come in and take you all out of the game, permanently! Ohohoho, be honored to be defeated by such a lovely and royal opponent as I!"

"Does your Infinite Princess know you're stealing her thunder?" yelled a voice from the trees. Ast, Fay, and Skye burst in. Ast smiled sassily as she raised her eyebrows at Xanthe. "You think you're so cute, huh? Even the cutest face can be ruined when faced with the blade of Cure Jet!"

Skye rolled her eyes. "Come on, Asterisk, we don't need the banter. We just need to drive her off before she releases a Humglum, same as ever."

"We consistently fail to do that _because_ of Ast's banter," Fay pointed out. "I'm starting to think Ast likes fighting."

"You bet your Ast I do!" said the girl in question, murder flashing in her eyes, which were still aimed at the Color War general.

Xanthe glared back, but then spun around again, accidentally tearing her dress as she did. She paused in annoyance. "Well, don't let me hold you back. A good princess gives her subjects what they want, after all!" She reached into her pockets and pulled two fistfuls of Fearful Beads, then tossed then, scattering them on the ground. Some hit nothing; others hit some of the campers. Smoke images began to show a myriad of fears, but the strongest ones by far were Abbey's. Nightmare dreamscapes played out with every classic bad dream, and several strange ones. Monsters terrorized Abbey as kids at her school laughed at her, and color drained from the backgrounds as her good dreams began to wilt.

"Now!" continued Xanthe, "As I see your fears, let them become!"

An abomination of a monster burst from Abbey, seeming to pull along the fears from other campers too. "Yikes!" said Sofía. "This one looks mean."

Xanthe smiled and clapped her hands twice. "Have fun in your last battle, Precure Eight! I'll be watching you fall from afar!" She disappeared just as Ast picked up a reddish rock and threw it at her, and the stone passed through the air where she stood and into the Humglum. As it fell through the monster, the girls watched the color drain from it, leaving it a dull grey.

The Humglum roared with at least twelve of its mouths, and Kaitlin felt tears welling up in her eyes, tears she tried to blink back as she chanted to herself. "Courage, courage, courage… I have to have courage to be a Precure, even if the monsters are scary!"

"I guess Abbey was afraid of her own Eldritch horrors," said Brandy grimly, cracking her knuckles. "Not the kind of creature anyone would want to find in the woods, so let's get some real mythical beings in here to take it down, right guys?"

"Amelie will be back from break any minute, though," Fay warned. "I don't know if we have time to transform."

The thought sat heavily on their hearts for a moment as the Humglum raged, its smoke-like arms passing through trees and draining them of life. It crept closer and closer to the group of kids. As it swept through a passing rhododendron bush, Skye's face hardened, and she turned to face her friends. "We can't just sit here deciding whether our powers are worth sacrificing a group of kids for."

"We were just waiting for Amelie…" protested someone. Skye wasn't too sure who; she was enraged.

"No. In a few moments, these kids will be in horrible danger, and I don't want to wait around for someone to save them, even if it means this is my end as Cure Jade. I'm going to do the right thing, but you are all welcome to leave if you think I'm wrong."

The girls looked at each other and nodded. No more words were needed. They knew what to do.

"Nightmares nevermore! Scary story transformation!"

"Precure! Advance me!"

"Gem of the summer, guide us through a mythical transformation!"

And in three bursts of light, the subteams vanished, caterpillars in their magical chrysalises.

* * *

Smoke from an invisible campfire enveloped Fay, Bing, and Sofía, lifting them up and surrounding them with magical sparkles and shimmers. Vines snaked up Bing's arms while Sofía clapped to summon a pointed purple hat, and Fay pulled a ribbon from nothing. As they moved, transforming themselves, they couldn't help but smile, bringing those smiles with them into their signature poses.

Fay saluted perfectly, standing even taller than normal. Bing moved as though to spike a volleyball, and Sofía twirled a finger with a sassy and magical flair that was so unique, it was impossible to perfectly imitate.

"A mischievous silhouette on a firelit night, Cure Witch!"

"A warm smile on a summer's night, Cure Pumpkin!"

"A ghostly chill on a still night, Cure Spectre!"

"Banishing fear with the power of courage, we are Spooky Stories! Pretty Cure!"

* * *

Ast and Kaitlin spun and moved in perfect unison, their hearts connected by some silent beat. As they spun, kicked, and dipped, their outfits materialized, with Ast's new black and red ensemble complimenting her naturally dark hair, which abruptly became fire truck red in a shower of sparkles. Kaitlin's locks turned a bright pink as her cheeks, while her own two-piece outfit followed in the same shades (though it, at least, had accents of a light, silvery grey).

They broke their hold on each other to pose, Ast's hands sweeping up and towards the sky, while one of Kaitlin's snapped into an imperfect salute (though next to Cure Spectre, nothing would have looked quite as perfect), the other landing on her hip.

"The sable, summery team player: Cure Jet!"

"The hopeful and warm challenger: Cure Grandmaster!"

"Pieces moving together to an upset victory – Game Tempo Precure!"

* * *

A green full moon enveloped Skye, changing her clothes with magical ease and elegance. Nearby, Jasmine's transformation at the hands of multiple lightning bolts struck both of them as much more energetic. Neither, however, matched Brandy's dynamic and dangerous movements as campfire crept up, consuming her clothing and changing her very appearance.

Right before they posed, they felt the pop of new, animal traits: bright gold eyes for Brandy, wings for Jasmine, and rabbit ears springing from Skye's head.

"Burning brightly with the magic of courage, Cure Cerberus!"

"Shining brightly as a beacon of summer, Cure Garuda!"

"Reflecting brightly the potential of each camper, Cure Jade!"

"Never forgetting what's important! Mythical Woods Pretty Cure!"

* * *

As the smoke and light faded, the teams looked at each other, not even having to communicate with or without words. They'd fought together before; they each knew the drill.

The strategic genius of Game Tempo split up, each leaping onto tall trees to watch over the others. "Don't touch it!" yelled Cure Grandmaster. "We don't want to see what happens if you do!"

"Okay," said Cure Garuda, "but in return, you two summon your weapons, just in case. We don't know how high up this thing can reach."

The two nodded, and after a brief summoning, Grandmaster clutched her baton desperately, while Jet twirled a large, black sword with little care.

Cure Garuda, up above even the Game Tempo girls, twisted and twirled in midair, trying to catch the Humglum's eye. She darted gracefully in and out of its grasp, only wincing minimally at the teeth that climbed up its arm. After a moment, the thing seemed to forget about stomping through the forest; it switched its focus over to the girl who kept getting uncomfortably close to its many eyes, swatting at her like she was a mosquito. Garuda yelped as it almost brushed her foot.

"Clear the way, Cure Garuda," said Cure Jade, a sly smile playing on her face as she thrust out a hand towards the beast. " _Relative Constant_!" A glowing green sheet of energy lifted the monster up and then disappeared suddenly, causing the thing to fall flat on several of its faces.

Cure Jet grinned. "So magic can beat this thing, even if we can't touch it, huh? Wonder what it'd say to a magical sword in some of those eyes?"

"T-that's so dark…" Grandmaster's eyes were wide and her lip quivered, but she quickly shifted her gaze back to the ground, watching the abomination struggle.

"Not as dark as these thoughts are," said Cure Spectre, her eyes narrowed. "Who's been letting these little kids watch horror movies?"

The look on Cure Pumpkin's face implied that this was exactly the sort of thing she would do, but she only narrowed her eyes at the shadowy beast. "It doesn't matter, anyway, time to get rid of it."

"Yeah, let's put this nightmare to rest!" cheered Cure Witch. She traced a finger down her opposite arm, then tapped the resulting bone-shaped wand on her hip before raising it up and pointing it dramatically. Her face scrunched up slightly as she focused every brave and courageous thought she could into the weapon, tracing a star in the air as she did so. "Pretty Cure Haunted Hex!"

The magic hit and burned a large and neat hole through the monster. Witch flinched, expecting it to regenerate, but it didn't, and from up above, Jet's eyes twinkled. "So, if we all use our finishers, think it'll just disappear?"

"Worth a shot!" Cure Cerberus hollered. "Let's go, girls!"

Wands, swords, and batons were summoned in a flash, and the girls grouped into their subteams, surrounding the Eldritch horror with much more confidence than they had at the start of the battle. "On three, we finish him," said Cure Pumpkin. "You guys know the drill. One!"

The Spooky Stories Pretty Cure raised their wands. "Pretty Cure!"

"Haunted Hex!"

"Jack-o-Jinx!"

"Cobweb Curse!"

"Two!" said Jet, as she tucked her sword into its suddenly-appearing sheath and gripped Grandmaster's hand. Grandmaster joined her to chant the finisher in unison. "Precure Heartpiece Capture!"

Cure Garuda looked to her two best friends. "And… three! Pretty Cure Amber Dive!"

"Moonlit Snare!"

"Hellfire Slash!"

Caught between eight bursts of magic, the Humglum let out a last pathetic whisper of its own name before dissolving. As it disintegrated, not one, but three Courage Beads. Jade, Spectre, and Jet each picked one up, and in turn showed the rest of the group the designs, each basically the same, but with a few key differences. Though all had monsters at the forefront, one showed too many teeth and spikes for any reasonable beast. The next was designed with multiple eyes, and the third had long, twisted arms that seemed to be depicted moving in unnatural ways.

They switched their view over to the group, where three sleeping bodies not there before now rested. One was Abbey, her straight black and white hair falling over her face. The other two were a couple of the girls who were said to hate her. "Well, those are all our monster, alright. I guess maybe our scene friend was trying to deal with her own fears in the best way she knew how, and it just caught the others in a bad situation," said Cure Witch with a frown. "I'm a little worried, though. I've never seen…"

"A combination Humglum… neither have I."

There was no cursing, no bitter faces, but rather just calm resignation as the girls watched a new Precure step from behind the trees. Her hair was long, golden, and curling all around her ears and neck, down to the midpoint of her back. Sun-shaped tattoos marked her arms, and her dress was as golden as everything else. She was, surprisingly, smiling.

"Amelie?" asked Cure Grandmaster.

The Cure's smile grew. "You can call me Cure Luciole for now, girls."

"Well then, Cure Luciole," said Garuda, "we have something for you before you say anything. Hold out your hands."

The three girls holding the newly-gained beads brought them forward, and the others began to unclasp and remove their own Courage Beads. "We don't want what we've gained to go to waste," explained Cure Jade.

"And though our memories, hopes, and friendships won't, the Beads might have," said Spectre.

Cure Jet dumped the first one unceremoniously into Luciole's outstretched hands. "So they're yours now."

The grown Cure looked down on it in surprise, then shook her head and handed it back. "I can't accept this. You earned these, however, ah, wrongly."

"But if we can't use them, what's the point?"

"Well…" Luciole appraised them. "You're all very good at what you do. I thought I might have to step in, but no. You work well as a team, and I'm sure that power will be harnessed well when you're on staff in a few years. Until then, I'm sure you'll be responsible enough not to use the power you have."

"You're not going to, like… take it away?" asked Cure Cerberus.

Luciole grinned and shrugged. "I can't. And how can I punish you for something that nobody can know about, including my own superiors? So, I'm just going to give you the worst thing I know." Luciole glared at them, and the glance was chilling… or at least, it was until you saw the twinkle behind it. "Don't do it again, or else. Now, I'm going to leave, and when I come back…"

"Normal campers," chimed the eight girls as they tried to hide their smiles.

"Great. See you in five."

* * *

When the group arrived back at the cabin, neither of the other observation groups had returned yet, though that was partially due to the fact that with two counselors and three groups, Kendra, DJ, and Delcine had been left with another program's staff member and Amelie had to pick them up, something she did immediately upon the other group's safe arrival in the cabin.

For a moment, the girls collapsed onto their beds, but then Brandy began laughing. "We all look like wrecks," she said. "Maybe showers are in order all around?"

"As soon as I can stand," muttered Sofía.

The door to the cabin creaked open and Biddy walked in, followed by Vita, Mallory, Brooke, and Harper. Each young woman had twigs in her hair, dirt on her face, and a wide-eyed surprise at seeing most of the other CITs much the same way.

"Nice observation?" croaked Biddy after a moment, and the five girls nodded.

"You?" asked Bing with a nervous smile. Even Vita was quiet as Biddy shrugged and walked past.

As soon as the counselor was in her room, Mallory smiled cheerfully, but not too genuinely. "I think all us in the Biddy group are going to go take a shower! There's four stalls, right? Yeah, just enough for us! So none of you come in until we're done! Okay, bye!"

And they were gone.

Brandy raised an eyebrow and nudged Sofía. "You think they're…"

"What? No way. We'd know about it by now."

* * *

"Do you think they might be…" Brooke trailed off, her round face scrunched up in worry, her hands on her cheeks.

Vita scoffed. "What? No way."

"I agree," said Harper. "If they were also Precure, we'd know by now."

* * *

 _Special ED: Song of Stories, Song of Summer_


	11. Spooky! A Girl in the Woods?

_OP: Magical Story~Time_

* * *

Ten middle school girls hugged their official Breezy Bridge hoodies and blankets closer, shivering not just from the unseasonably cold mountain wind, but from the wicked expression on the face of their leader. Marie's eyes were big, and her short, spiky brown hair seemed to whip all over the place, giving her a frantic and feral appearance. Across from her, another girl, Ingrid, bounced up and down in excitement. "Hurry, Marie, before Arielle gets back! She'll shut us down again!"

Marie nodded, and her face grew darker as she leaned back from the campfire. "Ten years ago tonight, a witch cursed this camp. She was fed up with all the joy and laughter, the color and the noise. So she bared her fangs and said that the sixty-fifth year at Camp Breezy Bridge would be the worst year of camp yet."

Two seats away from Marie, Abbey rolled her eyes. "You call that a scary story? Nothing that bad can happen at camp."

Ingrid pouted. "Shut up, Abbey! You're just mad that we think Marie's stories are scarier than your old made-up monsters."

Marie paid the bickering pair no mind. "The next day, the arts and crafts building exploded, injuring poor, innocent kids, just like us. They thought about shutting down the camp for the summer, and they should have. However, the camp director didn't believe in dark magics, and wanted to keep the money that parents paid her. The summer marched on, and so did tragedies, one after the other." Marie looked each girl in the circle straight in the eye. "Storms struck down trees. The ropes course found out that their ropes all broke one night, with no reason why they should have. Campers got mysteriously ill."

"That can happen any year." Abbey rolled her eyes and yawn. "It _does_ happen every year, in fact. Except maybe for the thing with the ropes."

The group continued to ignore Abbey, listening to Marie, completely enraptured. Marie grinned at the attention. "The witch got frustrated with the tenacity of the girls," she said. "So, she said that she would send one more trial. She would send a ghost into the woods to test the bravery of the campers. If after ten years from the night she first cursed the camp, not one girl had screamed at the ghost, she'd concede and admit defeat. But if even one girl were to scream, then at the ten-year anniversary, she'd curse the camp all over again… worse this time."

Ingrid now looked terribly frightened, though Abbey just looked bored. The other girls were a spectrum from one reaction to the other, though they were on the edge of their seats to a woman.

With a smile, Marie slowly continued on to the last few sentences. "Of course, the ghost wants to stick around, right? She won't if nobody screams at her, so as the years creep on, she grows more and more desperate, more and more eager to terrorize poor campers like you and me. Of course, that means that tonight, she'd be the most desperate of all? She could be hiding behind any tree, waiting to pop out and yell-"

"U-uh-um…excuse me-caw?" said a voice from the edge of the woods.

The girls' eyes shifted away from Marie to the figure who stood there. The girl was young, no older than seven or eight, and she wore a flowing white gown. Her hair was dark and draped over her entire body, straight as string, and her skin was specter pale.

Though all the girls screamed at the sight of the camp ghost, nobody did so louder than Marie.

* * *

Brooke was grumpy when she woke early the next day, pulling her chewing necklace into her mouth almost immediately upon waking and gnawing on it thoughtfully as she watched the sun rise. She'd heard screams the night before, and it made sleeping hard; though she knew the staff was more competent than she sometimes gave them credit for, she wondered if she'd done the right thing by leaving the screams to them. Those worries had left her unable to get back to sleep.

The rest of the cabin was still dreaming, from Kaitlin directly over her all the way to Mallory and Harper at the opposite end of the room. The observations the day before had left each of the three groups exhausted, so they'd slept early and well apart from her. Brooke sighed and checked her watch, mostly just to allow her hands to move. It was still an hour before most of them would wake up. She could try to sleep again, but rest wouldn't come easily, if it came at all. It was probably no use.

A door creaked, and Brooke shifted her head to watch it open. It was the door to the counselor's room, and Biddy seemed to be sneaking out. In her hands, she held what looked like a lump of dry, crusty modeling clay. Biddy stared at it for a fleeting moment, then turned to look around the room, almost jumping when she saw Brooke's eyes on her.

Brooke raised a hand and waved, her chewy necklace still hanging from her mouth.

With a little sigh, Biddy walked over. "What are you doing up?" she said. "It's only six."

Letting her necklace drop from her mouth, Brooke shrugged. "I wake up early anyway, and I couldn't sleep very well. What about you? Everyone knows counselors love sleep more than anyone."

Biddy didn't answer. Instead, she tilted her head towards the front door. "Outside?"

The two slipped outside and sat down at one of the nearby picnic tables. Over the last day or so, it had grown strangely cold, and Brooke found herself glad she'd thought to bring her blanket. Biddy's jacket was unzipped, and Brooke wondered if she was cold, but the counselor didn't so much as shiver. Instead, she turned the strange grey lump over and over in her hands. "Is that a fidget toy?" asked Brooke curiously. If so, she'd never seen anything like it.

Biddy blinked in surprise, then smiled and shook her head. "No, it isn't," she said with a tiny snort. "It's not much of anything anymore. It used to be a lump of clay."

That made sense, looking at it, except for a tiny problem. "Why are you carrying around a lump of clay?"

There was not an immediate answer. Biddy turned the dry clay over and over in her hands for a few seconds before she responded. "This is what I was grabbing when the fire started," she said idly, as though she were trying to distance herself from the thoughts. "This is all I managed to save from the original arts and crafts building, and even that was an accident. I shoved it into my pocket without thinking. I only found it later. It's all I have that's even remotely connected to that day, to Amarantha."

"Do you often go outside to look at it?" Brooke asked, then pressed her lips closed. She hoped that didn't come out snappy or rude; she was legitimately curious, in part because she couldn't quite understand why Biddy kept such a rotten reminder of an equally rotten memory.

"Today's the tenth anniversary of the fire," said Biddy. "I don't often look at it at all, or even think about it. Today, I was going to do something special with it. That's what the plan was before I saw you were awake."

"What? Huh?"

"Today I'm going to return this piece of clay to where it came from," said Biddy. "Would you like to tag along?"

* * *

The sun broke through the trees, gaining in brightness as Biddy and Brooke walked along the trail towards the new arts and crafts building. There were several units of cabins to pass as they hiked, but most were still asleep, as the morning bell didn't ring for another half an hour. It wasn't until they were almost there, passing the middle school cabins, when they heard signs of awakened children, in the form of terrified screams.

Biddy and Brooke only glanced at each other before running towards the sound.

By the time they got to the source, Biddy had her hand clasped around her brooch and her mouth halfway open to shout the transformation phrase. Brooke's mouth was closed, but her pin was already in her curly hair, ready for action. It threw them out of their rhythm when they saw no Humglum and heard no sign of any of the five generals who liked to throw the daily lives of campers for a loop. Instead, they saw only two terrified children, hugging each other close.

"Girls, what's wrong?" asked Biddy in her crispest, most down to Earth voice. "Where are your counselors?"

One of the girls sniffled. "Eleia and Arielle sleep through anything except their alarms," she said. "and even if they were awake, they don't believe us. They think we just scared ourselves too much last night."

"They think it's Marie's fault, but she was as scared as the rest of us when the… the… the-" Tears made the second girl stutter.

"The what?"

"When the ghost appeared!" wailed the first girl at Biddy's question. "Marie warned us that the witch was coming back, and we're all doomed because we weren't brave enough! We doomed the camp! I'm sorry!"

Biddy raised an eyebrow. "You think you saw a ghost."

"I know I saw a ghost!" One of the girls' cheeks puffed out in protest. "She had black hair and a white dress and she was super small. I bet she was like, a second grader when she died or something."

"You're scared of a second grader?"

"I'm scared of the ghost of one, yeah!" nodded the other girl.

Biddy sighed. "What are your names?"

The first girl pointed to her friend, then to herself. "She's Ilse, and I'm Ingrid. We're both in sixth grade this year."

"Okay. Ilse, Ingrid, go back into your tent. Brooke here and I will go deal with this so-called ghost."

Ilse's eyes went wide. "But you'll die! The witch's curse…"

"That's what this is about? That's just a scary story. It's not real."

"How do you know?" asked Ingrid pointedly.

Biddy's face grew surprisingly dark, her blue eyes alight with an inner fire that Brooke had seen only once before… when she was fighting the original four Care Package Precure. She stared down the two girls, who seemed to feel the danger in the air as they shrunk inwards and stepped backwards, away from the counselor. "How do I know?" asked Biddy. "How do I know? Because I was there on the day of the fire, inside the building itself. The stories got one thing right… there were and are dangerous forces at work at Camp Breezy Bridge. They are, however, forces for good. No witch would dare curse this land, on fear of her own life. That includes summoning ghosts. Am I clear?"

Ilse and Ingrid had pulled apart slightly, but at Biddy's hissed declaration, they drew close together once again. Looking almost as terrified as before, the two girls nodded.

"Great." Biddy looked at Brooke. "Now, let's go check out the woods before we finish our errand. Everyone wakes up in about twenty minutes, and I'd like to be back by then.

When they were a suitable distance away, Brooke looked up at Biddy. "Should we transform?"

"No, not until we see something. I don't doubt the girls think they saw a ghost, but there are all manner of animals in these woods, and plenty of counselors who get up for early morning jogs or meditation that perhaps spooked them."

Brooke frowned. "So we're looking for… something? Like this?" she asked as she plucked a dirty crown of white cloth flowers off the ground. Something glittered in the center of each one.

"Like that, only that further proves my point. There are no ghosts at Breezy Bridge, because a ghost wouldn't leave behind a physical object." Biddy's eyes narrowed. "Maybe it's one of those nature loving counselors…"

"With diamond centers on the flowers?"

"With _what_?"

Brooke showed her, and Biddy's frown deepened. "Okay, so there may be no ghosts at Breezy Bridge, but one thing is for sure. There's definitely something mysterious going on in these woods."

* * *

Leaving the clay at the arts and crafts building held surprisingly little ceremony to it, and Brooke was almost disappointed. She had kind of expected a poem or a sort of amended funeral. Instead, Biddy placed it on the porch and walked away. Slowly, Brooke trailed after her.

They got to the cabin just as everyone began to wake up, and Brooke got ready as quietly as she could get away with. Even the march to the dining hall for breakfast was mostly silent on her end. She was still processing what she'd learned.

There was something or someone in the woods on the tenth anniversary of the fire. Biddy might have been too preoccupied to think clearly about that, but Brooke wasn't.

 _Could the stories be true, even in variation? If magic is real for us, couldn't ghosts and witches exist?_

She'd opened her mouth to quietly ask Vita, Harper, and Mallory when she was attacked from behind. A shriek escaped her mouth as she twisted to see a pretty girl with silky brown hair and perfectly glossed pink lips smiling at her. "Mariko!" sighed Brooke.

"Hi there! My little sister won't let me do this to her anymore, so you're my new victim until she gets jealous, okay?"

Brooke shook her head. "I don't like it when people touch me before I know it's happening. Could I suggest Mallory?"

"Mallory… that's a good idea," mused Mariko. Across the table, Mallory went pink as her magical girl outfit. "Next time, I will. Til then… have you girls heard the news?"

"What news?" asked Harper flatly.

"The Breezy Bridge Curse has been reborn," said Mariko, her hands moving rapidly as she spoke. She was obviously excited. "Nobody's ever seriously reported the ghost from the curse story, ever, not until this morning, the very morning of the anniversary of the big fire. Suddenly, ten girls claim they saw it, and that she's roaming the camp for good now!"

Harper rolled her eyes. "You can't tell me you believe it?"

"It wasn't just one or two girls, it was ten! Of course I believe it."

"Ten _middle school girls._ " Harper sighed. "More than likely, they made a pact that they would all tell people that they saw the ghost, kind of like when we were ten and made that pact that we'd become nuns if Camp Oginali shut down. Something I don't think any of us have held to under pressure, I should note."

Mariko stuck out her tongue and walked off, yelling over her shoulder. "Fine! I'll go inform someone who cares, then!"

Harper smirked. "Argument won, in favor of the younger twin as always."

Brooke picked at her surprisecake, filled with blueberries. "But Harper! What if she's right? If we have magic, and the counselors have magic, what is there to stop someone else from having magic? What's there to stop someone from being an evil witch?"

The group had been so confident only moments before. However, after Brooke's question, the four teenagers grew quickly silent, lost in that thought.

* * *

There was nothing to do but move on with the day.

There was no CIT observation, but they were asked to "be good examples" when their swim time coincided with the same group of middle school campers that started the ghost rumor. Counselors watched the younger girls like hawks, though it hardly seemed necessary when the sixth, seventh, and eighth grade girls were even jumping at the tiny, curious minnows that swam too close to them in the lake.

Vita nudged Brooke when they were far from the others. "I almost want one of the Color War generals to appear, just so we have a chance to knock these dumb fears out of 'em."

"Vita, you're afraid of monsters, too."

The older girl's face grew bright red. "Well… yeah! But ghosts aren't monsters, they're just dead people!"

* * *

 _EYECATCH 1: A brief montage of Brooke moments: sewing patches onto a backpack, having a tea party with the other Care Package Precure, tying elaborate knots, and finally, playing peek-a-boo as Cure Cocoa._

 _EYECATCH 2: Myfanwy and Hestia fly in circles, then fall onto a comfortable bed, where they are surrounded by a mountain of plush toys. It's a smiling Brooke who rescues them._

* * *

Swim time passed quickly, and the girls changed even faster from their bathing suits into their normal clothes. As most of the CITs hurried down the trail that led to their cabin and a promised rest hour, the five Care Package Precure hung back to talk about what Brooke had proposed.

"Tell me this theory of yours again," said Biddy, her arms crossed over her chest. "I need to digest it a little more."

Brooke shuffled her feet, and shyly looked up at her friends. "So, I wondered if maybe the story of the camp witch really wasn't too far off? At first, I thought it was maybe just because magic is real, and all, but then I realized too many things made sense. You've all heard the story, right? It's been making rounds this year because of the ten-year mark from the fire." Everyone nodded, and Brooke continued. "Perhaps the 'witch' was a Color War general, and the ghost was a Humglum? It would have been defeated ages ago, but it could have caused the fire if it was a sneaky one. With Color War coming back, the new ghost could be another Humglum, too!"

"Bzzzzt!" yelled a brash and rough boy's voice. "Game over! You're wrong! It's a real ghost!"

The girls looked around for a moment before the voice spoke again. "Hey, noobs! Up here!" As the five looked upwards into a tree, where a preteen boy dressed all in blue played idly on a handheld gaming system, the kid finally grinned. "Geez, for girls who can beat up my grandma, you're not too bright, are you? Or too pretty, despite the whole 'Pretty Cure' thing."

"Verte said something about an annoying grandson. You must be Cobalt," Harper said with a glare.

Cobalt smirked. Even his teeth seemed to catch the color scheme, the light dancing off of them highlighting the pale, icy blue enamel. "Figured that out all by yourself, girl?"

"I…"

"I wasn't askin'. Shut up, I'm trying to watch these losers." He pointed to the group of middle schoolers that the CITs had swam with. The group was now heading their way. "You know, I could turn this entire camp into Humglums with the whole ghost story mess going on? Still, I like my monsters in quality, not quantity. A good sniper can take out a whole zombie hoard, right?"

"I have no clue what you're talking about," said Vita, frowning.

He ignored her. "Ghosts are the newest craze at Breezy Bridge, huh?" said Cobalt as he leaned over and leered at the group. "Ghosts, and the mysterious camp witch who supposedly cursed this land? Oh, I'll have a field day."

"Don't you dare!" Brooke said with a glare. "You're taking advantage of young girls' pure belief in magic in order to further your evil? That's despicable!"

Cobalt rolled his somewhat normal looking blue eyes. "Don't worry, I'm not about to turn anyone into a Humglum."

"I- wait, what?"

"I'm gonna go scare 'em more and _then_ do it!" explained the young Color War general. "Gotta make the monster as strong as I can. Later, losers!" he said as he jumped down from the tree and ran off towards the middle school campers.

The five girls glanced at each other and wasted no time in running after him. Despite hours spent lazing in front of a television screen, however, Cobalt was quick. His blue-black hair seemed to blur as he dodged tree after tree, the light hitting his death-toned skin as it filtered through.

From other directions, screams started. Biddy skidded to a stop, and the other four followed. 'That'll be to lure the counselors out, which is bad for the campers we're trying to save, but good for us. We don't want to rush in there when they can see us. In fact, guys, all of you, behind the tree!"

The five hid behind several convenient and large birch trees that obscured them from view of anyone on the path. They heard several people run past, fast as anything, and soon after, Biddy motioned for the Care Package Precure to continue on.

The group must have run the other way for a little while; they were not as close as they had been. Eventually, the screams of fear and confusion could be heard, followed by a single clear phrase yelled by Cobalt. "As I see your fears, let them become!"

As Brooke and her friends closed the last bend in the path, they watched the Humglum appear. Stark white from tendril hair to floating feet that hovered inches off the ground, it was the ultimate ghost. Cobalt turned to another girl, the only one not frozen… or rather, she was, but due to fear and not magic.

"Marie, right?" asked Cobalt easily. The girl nodded. "Hmm, your fear has a strange sort of spike, like it's new, still crisp from the source. Anyway, why so pale? You look like you've seen a ghost!" He laughed at his own joke.

"I- yesterday, I-" stuttered Marie, right as Biddy ran forward, the CITs following.

Biddy took Marie's shoulders. "What you saw yesterday wasn't a ghost," she said grimly. "But this sure seems to be. Marie, run as fast and as far away as you can. And CITs!" Brooke, Mallory, Harper, and Vita all looked to Biddy as Marie darted into the woods. "You guys know what to do. On my mark."

The group waited until Marie was well out of hearing range and Biddy had nodded approval before they cried out their transformation phrase. "Precure! Lead me home!"

As the light finished changing them, they each shouted their introductions.

"Protecting the promise of hearth and home, I am Cure Marshmallow!"

"Protecting the promise of safety and comfort, I am Cure Belay!"

"Protecting the promise of light and beauty, I am Cure Forest!"

"Protecting the promise of family and friendship, I am Cure Cocoa!"

"Protecting the promise of warmth and health, I am Cure Campfire!"

As they squished in for a group hug, then pulled away to pose once again, they finished their transformation with the standard group promise. "The starlight that shines upon these woods, we're Care Package Precure! We'll conquer your fears all together now!"

"Cocoa!" cried Cure Campfire. "You're the best strategist on team. Do you have a plan?"

It only took a split second of thinking, brow creased, before Cure Cocoa nodded. "Ghosts like dark and scary places to haunt, right? Marshmallow, Campfire, can you two give us some light, please?"

The two nodded. Campfire tapped one of her beads quickly. "Let's go! Night sky, courage up!"

As the orange accents on her costume shifted to black, Campfire ran to stand back to back with Cure Marshmallow. The other Precure couldn't help but snicker, while Cobalt was full-on laughing from the rock where he sat. The height difference between the two was over a foot, and combined with Cure Marshmallow's childish pout at the realization, the scene was almost no different than if the towering Campfire had compared heights with an elementary school camper instead.

Seeming not to notice the snickering, Campfire raised her hand, and Marshmallow followed. " _Figgy Starshine Fry_!" called the taller heroine.

The shorter one followed. " _Rhubarb Marshmallow Flambé!_ "

Blinding light shot at the Humglum and at Cobalt, and though the ghost seemed unaffected, Cobalt screamed in a high, silly pitch. "I can't see!" he protested. "I can't see the Precure lose! _I won't be able to see my video games!_ This is terrible! I have to retreat… just until this gets better…" He clapped twice and disappeared. Marshmallow and Campfire grinned, but then jumped backwards, getting into formation with the others.

"How does one fight a ghost, Forest?" asked Cure Belay. "You know a lot about monsters, right?"

Cure Forest scratched her chin thoughtfully. "Is there a Precure version of, like, an exorcism or something?" she asked in a voice that suggested that she highly doubted it.

The ghost monster seemed angered by the very suggestion. It swept towards the girls swiftly, the very essence of it draining the little warmth from the already chilly day. Cure Marshmallow shivered as she jumped back. "We're gonna need Cure Campfire to warm us up if this thing makes us any colder," she muttered.

"I'd gladly do it," said Campfire in a voice that was as frosty as the Humglum, "if I wasn't already trying to remember how to do a group purification. Cure Forest had the right idea; if we can encircle it, there's no way our magic can fail, even if it would normally."

It was easier said than done. The ghost Humglum phased through trees, plants, and the Precure themselves. After a few minutes, Cure Forest fell to her knees and screamed up at the sky in frustration.

"Couldn't we just go for a normal purification?" asked Cure Cocoa softly as the ghost passed through her.

Campfire frowned, casting her eyes downward. "I doubt it'd work."

"You can do it, Precure-caw! I believe in you!"

The girls turned, looking for the source of the strange and unfamiliar voice, but found none. Cocoa's lip quivered. "Is the ghost…"

"Use the lucky clover-caw!"

Campfire's eyes snapped wide open. "That's it! Everyone, throw your pins in the air on my mark. One, two, three!"

In unison, they tossed the brooches skyward, and in unison, the words came to them. "Precure! Lucky Clover, Debut!"

From the brooches unraveled five triangular pieces of fabric in five separate colors. Pink, green, purple, yellow, and red all appeared, each grabbed by the person they matched with. The five Precure ran clockwise around the monster, who seemed stunned into confusion.

Quickly, the separate pieces of fabric melded together into one big parachute. From the center, a lovely and sparkly clover debuted. Four of its five leaves were silver. The fifth was gold.

The five girls dropped the fabric, so it draped over the monster. "Fears be banished!" they yelled, same as ever. "Courageous Finale!" A sudden wind whipped the parachute away, revealing not the Humglum, but Ilse and Ingrid, each lying beside a Courage Bead.

Belay and Marshmallow nodded to each other. "We're taking these," said Belay. "I don't have any yet, and Marshmallow only has one."

"That's fine," agreed Campfire, but she looked concerned, as though the voice from before still weighed heavily on her mind."

As though her facial expression summoned it, the voice returned. "Precure-caw!"

This time, the direction of the voice was easy to identify. A young girl dressed all in white sat in a corner of the clearing. Her stringy black hair gave her a specter like appearance, sure enough, but she made no move to hurt anyone, simply sitting and smiling.

"Hestia?" From the sky Myfanwy dived. "Hestia, it's really you!"

In a blink, feeling safe, the five Precure detransformed and watched the reunion unfold.

* * *

Ten minutes and a story or two later, many questions had been answered, but still not all of them.

"Wait, but how long have you been in the woods for? If you were trying to find Myfanwy, shouldn't we have heard from you earlier?" asked Biddy. Her brow was furrowed in confusion.

Hestia's lip puffed out as she thought, her entire face contorted into obvious deliberation. "Maybe a day?" she suggested brightly, smiling, after about thirty seconds.

"What? No way! Myfanwy said you've been here for a while, and she came through with you, and she came through..." Mallory paused to count the days on her fingers. "About ten days ago now!"

Myfanwy was quiet as the five young women rushed around her, but then she tentatively raised a wing into the air. The girls looked at her as she spoke. "Perhaps the portal from the Hearth Queendom to Earth messes with time as well as space?"

Biddy thought, then nodded. "It seems likely."

"But that means you have no idea how long you've really been away… how long Color War has…"

Myfanwy nodded sadly. "That's right."

There was a beat of silence, then a change of topic. "Myfanwy, can you take on a human form too? It would be easier for you to blend in if you were a young woman and not a bird that looks like the sunset, now that you don't have to spend all your time searching for Hestia," said Harper. "Especially if Biddy could pull some strings and get you into a program. Maybe the counselors can't know we exist, but they can know that there are fairy refugees from another world, right?"

"Yes, certainly," Biddy said with a nod. "They blend into camp and help us when we need it. I should have thought of it myself. Myfanwy, it'd be better for everyone. Especially you. Just think, no more cramped, horribly messy backpacks… yes, Mallory, I've seen how you stuff things in there."

Mallory pouted, but Myfanwy smiled. "That makes sense. I'll try it out!"

Before their very eyes, Myfanwy's small fairy bird body was swallowed up by a large, sparkling, egg-shaped cocoon of magic. It sparkled and glowed, then blossomed like a flower, revealing the sight of a young princess-esque girl who seemed at a glance to be about twelve years old. Human Myfanwy's deep red-brown hair grazed the lowest points on her back, and her dark skin matched the shade of the tree trunks that surrounded them. Green eyes crinkled with a smile, and the clothes she wore were far from normal. Like Myfanwy's fairy form, the dress that swept the moss on the forest floor looked to be made out of the sunset itself.

Biddy stared, openmouthed, and Vita nudged her. "Are you gonna tell us what's wrong, or just stand there and let the flies come in?" she asked.

Shaking her head as though to expel certain thoughts, Biddy quickly composed herself. "It's nothing, really. Just, for a second, Myfanwy looked exactly like I remembered Amarantha."

* * *

Mallory was closest in size to the petite Myfanwy, so it only made sense that Myfanwy borrowed Mallory's clothes.

It also only made sense that Mallory quickly tried on the royal gown that Myfanwy shed. Just for a moment, just to see how the folds of fabric felt as they swept over her bare feet.

Long hair knotted into twin buns, and khaki shorts and a bright orange tee shirt couldn't quite disguise the regality of an Infinite Princess. Beside her, an even smaller Hestia had been completely changed at the hands of Harper. "Where'd you learn to sew like that?" asked Biddy, obviously impressed, as Harper made quick work of one of the counselor's shirts, changing it into a knee-length child's dress.

"Look, my mom hangs around a lot of designers, and I went to a lot of "take your daughter to work days" as a child. I like to think I picked up some useful skills, even if I rarely practice them," replied Harper, a corner of her mouth lifting.

Vita hummed as she gave the little fairy a surprisingly decent haircut that slanted to reach long points in the front, something shorter in the back. By the end of both girls' efforts, Hestia looked like a normal five- or six-year-old girl, if one with surprisingly stylish tendencies and a very odd pair of deep blue silken slippers that none of the Care Package girls could quite figure out how to replace.

"Now you just need names that can pass in the human world. Hestia and Myfanwy would draw a lot of attention… Hestia might get by, but still, I think it'd be better safe than sorry," said Biddy.

Brooke clapped her hands together. "What about names that have to do with the sky? Since they look like the sky themselves?"

Myfanwy nodded. "And since I nickname Hestia 'Star,' if people call her that, she'll respond."

"What about last names?" asked Harper. "If it wasn't so much like mine and Mariko's, I'd press on Hashikaze… or maybe even better… Kazehashi?"

Vita frowned. "How does that relate to the sky?"

"It doesn't. It's a really rough translation of 'Breezy Bridge.' I do mean really rough, but I think it'd be funny all the same." Harper smirked.

"We have to do it," said Mallory before Biddy could protest. The counselor rolled her eyes.

"Hestia," asked Myfanwy to the small fairy girl. "If people called you Star Kazehashi for a while, would you respond to that?"

Hestia nodded cheerfully. "Ok-caw!" she chirped.

"And could you try not to use your vocal tic for a while?" asked Myfanwy. "It might be confusing to people, or give us away."

"Give us away-caw?"

"Wait," said Brooke. "Let her use her tic. Don't be too hard on her! The campers and counselors here are nice; they can pass it off for a compulsive thing or something! My little brother repeats his words in a whisper voice, and I know some people with other speaking habits. It won't stick out if we explain it like that."

Myfanwy nodded and turned back to the subject at hand. "What about me? I have no nicknames that sound relatively Earthian."

"Well, if we're digging into our cultures, I kind of like Amaya for you," said Mallory. "End, as in the end of a day."

"And in Japan, it means 'night rain,' so double language bonus," said Harper.

"Summer for the surname!" cried Vita with a grin. "If we're going the obvious route, we have to do it right."

Brooke shook her head. "Summerfield! It sounds better, and it gives us at least a little deniability."

"Star Kazehashi and Amaya Summerfield." Biddy put her head in her hands. "This will never work."

"Maybe not," said Myfanwy… or, rather, Amaya… with a spunky grin. "But I think it'll be fun."

* * *

 _ED: Summer Camp Can Can_


	12. Blinding! History Repeats Itself!

_OP: Magical Story~Time_

 _This chapter sponsored by Fanfiction dot Net user Master Dragonfire! Thanks for supporting Care Package Precure!_

* * *

Weekends brought rest. That was the theory, anyway.

Biddy, however, couldn't sleep beyond her normal seven in the morning. The sunlight streamed through the trees, then through the thin window glass of the cabin. Amelie, in the bed across from hers, seemed unaffected… her bunk was a little more shadowy. Biddy felt a pang of jealousy as she tried to roll over, letting the warmth of the sun hit her back instead of her face.

Then, as it was sometimes, jealousy wasn't all she felt.

Guilt, unable to be traced to a specific source, grabbed the redhead by her heart and seemed to squeeze. She took a deep breath. She tried to establish herself… _I'm here, I'm safe, I'm fine._ When she couldn't keep it in anymore, when it felt like she was about to burst with negative emotions, when it was _positive_ that there was no way she was going to be able to sleep, she swung her legs out and got out of bed.

Biddy had collapsed Saturday night. She'd spent the day getting at least some rest, if not in a traditional sense… hey, mental and emotional rest was important too, and a day spent shopping with Amelie was just what she thought she had needed. Still, on the physical rest front, she wasn't exactly tip-top. She'd not even bothered to change out of her half-decent red and orange "weekend clothes," only even pausing to shrug off her favorite leather jacket, which was now in a heap on the floor. Biddy sighed and picked it up, laying it across her bed and trying to concentrate on how nice the day before was, not the aches settling into her gut like hurricane refugees into a high school gymnasium.

Maybe taking a walk would clear her head. It sometimes did. She had a few hours before campers were back, anyway. It wouldn't be too hard to go, relax a little, come back, change into her staff uniform, and put on her best fake smile.

She took her leather jacket back and put it on, then threw on her sneakers without bothering about socks. She wouldn't be long. She'd feel better in no time.

She hoped.

* * *

Biddy let her feet take her every which way. They started in main camp, a large, open field with barely any trees, sitting at the base of the large hill where the Director's Cabin was located. From there, she could see the lake, shimmering in the early morning sun, devoid of the boats that were normally out… they wouldn't come back until the kids got there. The light ripples of Lake Infinity caused the sunlight to reflect and cast beams of sunlight into Biddy's eyes… though she found the water soothing, she was forced to look away.

On her other side, the large dining hall sat, empty as it would ever be. She thought about going in there, but it seemed lonely. At least out in nature, she had the birds and the bugs to keep her company.

She found herself leaving the area, heading down one of the many interlacing trails through Breezy Bridge Woods. She passed the high ropes course and the low ropes course, a smattering of cabins that she had stayed in as a camper, and many, many trees. One foot in front of the other, her loud, loud mind seemed to take her on a tour of her camp. She was almost not surprised when she ended up in front of the rebuilt arts and crafts cabin.

She did a double take, after a moment. Someone else seemed to be there, too.

Director Eric stared up at the building, seemingly oblivious to Biddy. There was a look in her eye that was a little too old for her… what was she, twenty-eight? twenty-nine?... years. She was already in perfect staff uniform, though her staff pin was different than Biddy's, a lovely silver star. Biddy tried not to automatically associate that with Amarantha (the staff pin changed every ten or so years, so every older member of staff had the star). She failed.

The guilt had a place now, here in the middle of the woods, looking at this woman who just by _being older_ had too much similarity to Biddy's favorite counselor. There was a heaviness in the back of her throat that ached for some sort of release, and a loud, choking sob seemed to offer that.

Eric heard it. How could she not? She turned from the building to face Biddy. "Biddy Hadyn?" she said quietly, her voice rough, but still somehow soft.

Biddy nodded and sank down until she was sitting, leaning up against the nearest tree. "Sorry, I…" she managed to get out before another sob shook her, quite against her will.

Eric half-ran over to the younger staff member. She crouched down, balancing carefully, keeping herself eye level with Biddy. "Biddy, can you tell me what's wrong?" she asked. Her green eyes flickered over Biddy, thinking, analyzing, diagnosing. Biddy had no doubt that the camp director caught everything from the sorrow in her eyes to the sweat gathering on her brow.

She resisted the urge to say "Everything. Everything is wrong," because that wasn't quite right, and furthermore, it wasn't very helpful. As she tried to narrow it down, however, she realized that anything she could say that was honest wasn't likely to do much. Her anxiety was very vaguely placed, the depression more inclusive than exclusive. What was she going to say? "I'm sad?" She decided the best thing to do was shrug.

Forgoing her crouch, Eric sat down next to her. "I'm here," she said simply. "If you need to talk, or you need me to call someone, or anything. I'm here."

There was a… slight… relief at that. Mainly, at the fact that Eric didn't say what so many others said, "just breathe," as though Biddy didn't try to do exactly that.

"Would it help if I talked? It might distract you. I can be silent, too. What would help you?"

"Please. Talk."

Eric nodded slowly. "The arts and crafts building looks different since I last saw it," she said. "It's been years since I was here. I didn't think I was going to come back, but when I saw that Breezy Bridge was looking for a camp director, I couldn't resist applying. I never thought I'd get it, though. I'd been away too long, I thought. I'd worked at other camps in the interval, though, so I guess that made the difference. It's good to be home, though, you know?"

That confirmed something in Biddy. Every year, she thought about leaving Breezy Bridge and never coming back. Coming _hurt_. Still, something had always told her it'd hurt worse if she gave up her camp home for good, even if she managed to find another one.

"So much changed in the last ten, eleven, twelve years. I remember back when the staff wore teardrop pins and went by codenames. I guess time can do a lot to a place," laughed Eric. "The funny thing is? More things stayed the same. We've always been Precure here. We've always welcomed girls of all backgrounds, all ability levels, all statuses, both as camper and staff. We've always been the heroines who go out and change the world. No amount of rebuilt buildings and broken traditions will change that. It's what Breezy Bridge is. It's who _we_ are."

Eric paused, then added, "Biddy, you're very good at your job, all things considered."

 _All things considered?_ It sounded almost like a backhanded compliment, the first thing Eric had said that was wrong. What were these "all things?" That Biddy was an anxious wreck of a person with PTSD? Despite her bitter thoughts, however, the counselor managed to choke out a "Thanks?"

"Do you have fun?" asked Eric. "If you don't mind answering, I mean."

That felt like a trick question. Was being a counselor supposed to be fun? Jobs weren't made to be for people's enjoyment, they were _jobs._ Still, there was something that kept Biddy coming back to camp every year, even now that she was too old to be a camper. Was that something fun? In the state that she was in, she could barely tell.

She didn't answer after all, and after a moment, Eric took up talking again, quietly, without any questions or chiding. Eric told Biddy about her first year on staff, lining up with Biddy's second year as a camper… Biddy couldn't remember Eric, but didn't say as much, didn't say anything. Eric talked about her favorite kinds of weather, the things she was going to do as camp director during the off-season (lots of paperwork!). Eric wove tales of favorite campers, some sounding almost familiar in the way that she told them. She refused to name names, though.

It must have been half an hour when Biddy managed a smile at one such story. She looked up as Eric paused for breath, murmured two words. "Thank you."

Eric blinked. "For what?"

"For… not telling me just to breathe? For staying here and talking? I'm calmer now. I think… I think I can function."

Eric smiled. It was maternal, almost. Uncomfortably so, in fact… it reminded Biddy far too much of the smiles that Amarantha had shot her over ten years ago, so very, very close by. She rose slowly and took a step back. "I have to go get set up for the managerial meeting in a moment," she said. "Will you be alright on your own?"

Biddy nodded. "Yeah. I think so."

"Great. Don't hesitate to call me if that changes. If it doesn't, I'll see you at the all staff meeting at noon, we've got stuff to talk about before the kids come back at one. Have a good morning until then!" Eric said, then broke into a jog, slipping past Biddy down one of the many camp trails. Biddy felt a pang as she watched Eric go; she hadn't quite realized how much not being alone had helped.

* * *

It seemed to take longer to get back to the cabin, perhaps because she was ever so slightly more lucid. She noticed more. The sun was higher in the sky, and as she passed cabins, she could hear the murmurs and chatter of the other staff members, many of whom were only now choosing to get out of their beds. She saw, through layers of trees, some of the wild animals that made their homes in the woods… the rabbits and deer stayed a distance away, but the chipmunks came almost startlingly close to the trail, peeking their little heads out to watch Biddy as she passed. It was spotting them, trying to see if any would come any closer, that Biddy spotted the bead.

A fairly typical shiny black Courage Bead, it had splatters of different colors, like a messy rainbow. "Afraid of… paint?" Biddy muttered as she bent down and picked it up, turning the small item over and over in her hand. Something about it felt familiar, like she'd seen this one before. She shrugged. It must have been on one of her coworkers' Courage Bead bracelets. She'd find out who at the staff meeting, if she could. Until then, she strung it on her own bracelet, letting it nest in between the two beads she owned, fire and the night sky. It made a pleasant sight there, almost like it belonged.

It looked soothing. Biddy always had liked rainbows, and she always had loved magic. A thought crept into her mind: nobody would know she'd tested out this power, if she only used it a little, just to see what it could do. Even if someone knew, they'd probably want her to. It would calm her down.

She tapped it, slowly, cautiously. "Let's go," she whispered softly. "Courage Bead, courage up!"

Biddy's last lucid thoughts were about the dark smoke that whipped up much like the light of her transformation. Her last lucid thoughts were _Something is horribly wrong._

* * *

Something was horribly wrong.

Mallory knew it the moment she walked into her cabin on Sunday afternoon and found Biddy and Amelie nowhere in sight. She was the last to arrive of the Care Package CITs, and they led her to the second clue: they all jammed themselves in front of the door to the counselors' room, ears pressed against the wood, eavesdropping.

She walked up to them slowly. "What's going on?" she asked in a low, quiet voice.

Vita put a finger to her lip with a "shhh" sound that was rather louder than Mallory herself had been. Harper's ear, in response, pressed tighter to the door. It was Brooke, in the end, that delivered the news. "It sounds like Biddy is missing," she informed Mallory quietly.

"Missing?" Mallory exclaimed, forgetting, for a moment, to be quiet.

Vita hissed out another loud shushing noise, and Harper motioned Mallory to the door, scooting out of the way so the smallest Precure could listen in as well.

Though the sound was muffled, Mallory could make out most of a conversation, one that, from the static, seemed to be taking place between Amelie and a walkie-talkie.

"I gave her permission to miss the staff meeting, so I wasn't concerned," said the low, soothing voice on the walkie. The tone changed slightly, to annoyance. "Though I _did_ tell her to call me. She's really not in the cabin?"

"Nor in the picnic shelter, nor the arts and crafts building. Not in the dining hall, either, or the shower house. I'm unable to find her at all," Amelie said. Distress creeped into her tone, as did more of her French accent than she normally allowed to come through.

There was a pause from the other end of the conversation. "Okay, initiate missing persons procedures, then. Amelie, since you know Biddy well, I want you leading the search with me."

"The CITs…"

"They should be fine. Give them rest hour, tell them not to leave the cabin." The voice paused yet again, and added after a second of silence, "I'm only doing this because there's a good chance it might be…"

"Right. A Campfire issue, not a Biddy issue. I'll pass on the information. Thank you, Eric."

As the conversation ended and footsteps started to the door, the four young Precure jumped backwards, quickly scrambling for a halfway convincing "act natural" position. Brooke started gnawing anxiously on her chewing necklace, Vita tried to hold a handstand. Harper pulled out a book from the lower bunk where she slept, right next to the counselor's door, and Mallory, unsure of what to do, flopped face first onto the wooden floor, instantly regretting at as soon as a deep breath caused dust to fly up her nose. As Amelie walked out, she seemed to immediately put the odd scene into context with the likely reasoning, and sighed. "Ladies..."

Vita fell over. "I mean, do you really consider us ladies?" she asked from the floor.

Amelie shook her head. "I take it you heard everything? Fine. Stay here, rest up. I will be back with Biddy soon."

The four girls looked at each other. "Yes, Amelie," they chorused, though their eyes said otherwise.

It took little time for Amelie to explain an amended version of the situation to the CITs and leave; it took even less for the Care Package girls to fill in their friends on what was really going down.

Brandy frowned deeply. "We have to go help find her! She could be lost in the woods, or something."

"But Amelie told us to stay here," Kaitlin argued. Delcine nodded agreement.

Folding her arms over her chest, Sofía pouted. "There must be something we can do!"

There was a moment of thought before Harper and Bing stood at the same time, each seeming ready to direct. The two young women blushed for a moment before tag-teaming the direction.

"Delcine, DJ, Kendra, you three stay here and cover for us, okay?" said Bing, pointing to the girls she named. "Sofía, Kaitlin, and I will head to main camp. We can say Kaitlin forgot something there when she checked in."

Harper nodded. "And… Brandy and Jasmine, can you two search the water? Maybe you left something on the beach? Mallory, Brooke, Vita, and I will take the forest. Since we're the biggest group, it makes sense we cover the most ground."

Nobody seemed to argue, but as the Care Package Precure started off towards the door, Brandy caught Mallory by the wrist. "Be careful," she said. "The woods hide some crazy things. If you need help, don't hesitate to yell for any of us!"

Mallory grinned. "Thanks, Brandy," she said honestly. "But don't worry! Us four can take care of ourselves!"

* * *

 _EYECATCH 1: A brief montage of Biddy images: scolding a group of CITs including Mallory, dangling by her harness after falling off the high ropes course, folding an origami crane, and finally, posing as Cure Campfire._

 _EYECATCH 2: Myfanwy and Hestia fly in circles, then fall onto Biddy's head as she leads an activity. She rubs the bump they've made, then looks up at the camera and smiles anyway._

* * *

Maybe the forest should have felt scary, with Biddy missing and the team down to the size it had been the only time it came really close to being defeated. Still, the sunlight that filtered down through the tall trees of Camp Breezy Bridge was warm and kind, and it made the thing seem safe. Mallory felt it felt more like a game of hide and seek, almost. She couldn't comprehend that Biddy might be in danger, for all she tried to make herself. It didn't fit into her sense of logic. The day was too nice. The Precure were too powerful. Biddy was too strong.

Still, something nagged at her, that same gnawing feeling that had met her when she stepped into the cabin.

Brooke tugged loosely on Mallory's sleeve with one hand, pointing with the other. "Mallie, everyone, look! Smoke! Maybe it's Biddy!"

Sure enough, in the distance, smoke billowed up into the sky, a long, tall cloud of it almost begging to be explored. Harper frowned. "Wouldn't that be the place Biddy is _least_ likely to be?" she asked. "Where there's smoke, there's fire, and we all know that if there's one thing that Biddy hates…"

Vita shrugged. "So we have two options: either it is Biddy, or it isn't and there's a giant fire in the middle of the woods. Either way, someone needs saving. Let's go, Team Care Package!" she exclaimed as she broke into a run, not waiting for her friends.

Mallory, Harper, and Brooke shared a look before they began to follow, jogging quickly towards the smoke. It was far away, but not too far, maybe a four or five minute run at a reasonable pace. It got hotter as they got closer. Harper was probably right when she said there would be fire.

As they cleared a few final trees and finally saw the pillar of flame, fueled on magic, not wood, it was not as shocking as the other thing they saw.

Biddy's hair was short. It hadn't seemed to be _cut_ off as much as _burnt_ off. The patches were uneven, making a very sloppy undercut. Her eyes, normally blue even in her Cure form, were as bright red as the flames she stood in front of, and the grin she wore was as distressed as the tights underneath her Precure uniform. That uniform had she sleeves ripped off, the kerchief thrown out, and the pin bent into some unrecognizable shape. The fabric that it was made of had a number of scorch marks dotting it.

"Biddy?" Mallory called tentatively. Brooke folded her hands over her heart, and Vita leaned forward. There was a nearly universal feeling of worry at the sight.

Harper was the one who broke the pattern. Horrified, she took a step back. "No!" she yelled.

"Yes," hissed this strange version of Biddy. She threw her arms out intimidatingly. "Breaking the promises pledged, I am Raging Campfire!"

"Biddy, no, don't do this!" called Harper. "This isn't you!"

Mallory's gaze shot from Raging Campfire to Harper. "Harper? Do you know about this?"

"I…" said Harper, but as Raging Campfire's hand snaked out to touch Brooke, her words changed. "Everybody! Run!"

Her tone had Brooke and Mallory racing away quickly, though Vita, defiant to a fault, didn't budge. "Hey! Campfire? What the heck?"

Raging Campfire's red eyes glowed with excitement. "I've let my true self loose, Vita, can't you see? This is who I've always wanted to be around you. I'm in charge now. I'm in control, of myself, and of all of your fates!"

Brooke frowned and stopped running, turning to face Raging Campfire. "Biddy, that's ridiculous. You're not some supervillain. You're our friend!"

"Counselors can't be friends with campers," Raging Campfire said, her voice saccharine sweet. "You should know that. I get paid to be nice to you. Why else would I even bother?"

Brooke's eyes went wide and started to fill with angry tears. Mallory and Harper halted at the sound of Brooke's crying. _She's gone too far,_ decided Mallory as she spun around quickly, her hands reaching for her brooch. "Okay, that's enough!" she decided firmly. "Biddy, if you're not going to stop this, we've only got one thing to do. Care Package Precure, let's go! All together!"

"Precure!" shouted the four CITs. "Lead me home!"

In four flashes of light, the girls transformed, forgoing the usual hand-holding power boost in favor of a quick change. They let the magic take hold of them, spinning and dancing them around until their final pose and announcements.

"Protecting the promise of hearth and home, I am Cure Marshmallow!"

"Protecting the promise of safety and comfort, I am Cure Belay!"

"Protecting the promise of light and beauty, I am Cure Forest!"

"Protecting the promise of family and friendship, I am Cure Cocoa!"

"The starlight that shines upon these woods," cried the four all together, "We're Care Package Precure! We'll conquer your fears all together now!"

Raging Campfire laughed. "All you have done is given me an excuse to go all out, little ones. We'll see who can win… a bunch of rookies, or a veteran. Come on, children, give up. The grownups know best."

Marshmallow frowned deeply. "This isn't the Campfire I know! Our Cure Campfire wants us to think for ourselves and freely be the people we want to be, even if it can get us into trouble!"

"Our Cure Campfire has a better fashion sense, too," said Forest.

Raging Campfire scowled. "Come on, be good girls. Give into the fear that dictates your destiny. Enough playing the hero role. It's time to grow up!"

She darted out, hands outstretched, long red-painted claws aiming for the Cure Forest, the closest Care Package girl she saw. Cure Belay's eyes grew wide as she began to bark instructions. "Forest, get back! Nobody let her touch you, she can make you forget your bravery!"

Forest jumped up into the air, out of the way. "Nananana boo boo, can't catch me," she taunted, her hands at her ears, waggling mockingly.

Cure Marshmallow and Cure Cocoa looked to Belay. "Belay, what can we do?" asked Marshmallow.

"And how do you know so much about what's happening?" asked Cocoa.

Belay bit her lip and steadily looked her friends in the eye. "I'll explain later. For now, listen. We need to use our Courage Beads to deflect her without hurting her. When she's worn down, we can use our purifications. Got it?"

The two Cures nodded, and started off towards Raging Campfire. "Hey, fashion disaster, over here!" cried Cocoa. "Uh, sorry for calling you that!" she apologized after a second, unable to leave that comment unaccounted for, though she did follow up with a quick jab of "But it's true!"

Marshmallow smirked at Raging Campfire. "You might think you're better than us cause you're old, but we're young and dextrous. What are you gonna do with those old lady legs, complain about bad knees?"

Raging Campfire hissed and shot a stream of fire towards Cocoa. " _Rotten Raspberry Roast_!" she screamed.

"Let's go! Perception, Courage Up!"

Tapping instinctively on a one of her beads, the golden accents on Cocoa's outfit turned momentarily crystalline as she threw up a mirror shield. The fire bounced back towards Raging Campfire, but a wave of the older woman's hand dissolved it. "She's so powerful!" Marshmallow said with a frown and a gasp.

"That's right," said Raging Campfire. Her anger had been replaced abruptly with some new intonation, something alluring and dark. "Fear gives you power, kiddo." Her red eyes lit up as she turned to face Marshmallow. "Mallory, you live for that adrenaline rush, don't you? Don't you wish you could have it all the time? I can show you how. I can give that to you. It's so hard to be brave, anyway. So come on. Take my hand. That's the last hard thing you'll ever have to do."

"She's lying!" yelled Belay as the purple Cure watched Marshmallow hesitate. "She already admitted that she isn't our friend. Don't trust her!"

Cocoa dropped the shield she put up, her outfit trim fading back to golden and her breath tired and staggered. "Yeah! This isn't Biddy at all!"

Raging Campfire tilted her head, smiling. Somehow, in whatever transformation had occurred, she'd grown long, sharp fangs that glinted and caught the sunlight. "You don't know me very well. You might know my counselor face, but you've never met the real Biddy."

"We know you aren't an as-" Forest started, but was cut off by the stares of three CITs… the word she was about to say was, as they said, not very camp appropriate. "An associate professor of jerkiness," finished the green Cure weakly.

"The Biddy we know never gives up! She's the strongest person in this whole camp! It's how she survived this far, and how she's teaching us to be just as strong," said Cocoa passionately.

Something shadowy crossed Raging Campfire's face. "Maybe I don't want to be strong!" she said, her voice cracking, broken. "Maybe I want to not have this battle to face. Maybe giving in… no, not maybe. Giving in is what can make this better. If I live my life in fear, I'll never have to worry about when the flashbacks will come, or what horrible thing will happen next. I can live them all the time, I can be prepared to deal with them. I can be prepared to deal with you!"

She turned and shot another burst of flame, this time directed at Marshmallow. " _Rotten Raspberry Roast!_ "

"Let's go! Ghosts, courage up!" Marshmallow yelled, tapping the bead just in time. She watched the flames fizzle out as her outfit trim switched from pink to translucent and back again. Energy poured into the defense, draining her to the point where she had to collapse to her knees.

Belay quickly got in between her and Raging Campfire, Courage Bead at the ready, defenses prepared. "I know this isn't you. I've seen it before, on someone else, and this wasn't their true heart. I refuse to believe it's yours!"

"You've seen this before?" asked Marshmallow weakly.

Belay nodded. "Later. I'll tell you everything, later. For now, we have to purify her!"

" _Rotten Raspberry Roast!_ " cried Raging Campfire again, and it was only by grace of her preparation that Belay was able to launch her own defense.

Forest's eyes grew wide, worried. "Great! We always purify with two people, and now you three are too weak! What now?"

Raging Campfire smirked in victory. "What now? Time to give up, children, and listen to your elder at last."

Marshmallow shook her head, tears flying off her face. "No! We have to keep fighting! Biddy! You're our friend, no matter what you say!"

"This isn't like you! You've always told us to be strong; do the same for us!" Belay demanded.

Cocoa sunk to her knees, staring up at the counselor. "Please, Biddy?" she asked softly. "We love you so much."

"When you're not being a mega jerk, anyway," added Forest, her hands tapping at her Courage Bead bracelet anxiously.

Raging Campfire slowly shook her head with a fanged smile. "You've lost. You've lost, and you're wrong."

"No. They're right, Campfire," said a voice from the shadows, suddenly as anything. "You aren't like this. You're stronger than your fears, and you're strong enough to keep fighting, if you let yourself."

The four CITs looked to where the voice was coming from, and Raging Campfire's eyes followed, getting wider as they did. "It can't be. You… you're dead. You must be a cheap imitation of…"

"I'm no imitation," said the silver-clad Cure warrior as she stepped out of the shadows of the large birch trees. "Your eyes don't deceive you. You know who I am, Biddy."

The four untouched Care Package girls remained silent as this older Cure cut a path through them. She moved with the grace of a veteran Pretty Cure, her movements careful, her hands out and open, but easily able to move into an attack or defense. Lacy overlay swished on her uniform, and her translucent kerchief was knotted with a star-shaped brooch. From her head swung long white hair, tied back into a ribbon, silver tinsel tied in to dot her locks like stars in a strange, blank sky.

"This isn't real," cried Raging Campfire, clutching her own bent brooch. "You're dead and gone! I know that!"

"I assure you, I am very real," said the newcomer.

Her voice was cold up front, but Cure Marshmallow could detect something akin to warmth beneath it. This Cure hated Raging Campfire, but… she seemed to love Biddy. A memory struck Marshmallow then, a memory of something Biddy, as Cure Campfire, had told them. It seemed in that moment to be obvious who this mystery Cure was, but still, she had to _ask,_ didn't want to get it wrong. "Who are you, though?"

The newcomer Cure turned slightly and smiled, a grim, determined, _powerful_ smile. "Of course. I should introduce myself, shouldn't I?"

"Yeah, really, come on," said Cure Forest.

Belay, who seemed, oddly enough, to be less shocked than the others, nodded. "Please."

The new Cure snorted, and her arms were thrown up to the sky, as though she were trying to grab the sun itself. "The legendary warrior who hails from the constellations," she cried out. "I am Cure Stargazer!"

For a moment, Marshmallow thought that Raging Campfire might fall her knees, weeping, begging for answers and forgiveness.

Instead, the monster in Biddy's body snarled. Claws out, Raging Campfire sprang to attack.

* * *

 _ED_ : _Summer Camp Can-Can_

* * *

 _Next time on Care Package Precure_ :

Mallory: Cure Stargazer? Biddy thought she was dead!

Stargazer: The report of my death was an exaggeration.

Harper: You have to tell her!

Brooke: Yeah!

Vita: Well, I mean, last time Stargazer tried to tell Biddy, Biddy kind of tried to kill her.

Stargazer: My identity must remain secret. Don't say a word!

Mallory: Next time on Care Package Precure: Stars Above! A Heroine From The Constellations!

All (except Stargazer and Biddy): We'll conquer your fears all together now!


	13. Star Above! Hero From The Constellations

"The legendary warrior who hails from the constellations! I am Cure Stargazer!"

The silver-white veteran Cure was still in her introductory pose when Raging Campfire lashed out at her. Still, to the surprise of Cure Marshmallow, Stargazer showed no hesitation. She stepped backwards, stepped _into a jump,_ trusting her instincts to keep her safe. Her white hair, tinsel woven in, flowed outwards with the breeze.

* * *

 _OP: Magical Story~Time_

* * *

"You're lying!" Raging Campfire growled as she, too, rose into the sky with an easy leap. "You died! You died and for _nothing,_ because I'm nothing but a monster and the other girls…"

"Are safe, well. They never returned to camp, did they? No. Biddy, you're brave. You faced your fears head on." Despite everything, Stargazer smiled. "You came back."

"And you never did!" Raging Campfire readied an attack and aimed it at her old mentor. " _Rotten Raspberry Roast!_ "

Stargazer twirled as she dodged the attack, her tutu-like skirt flaring out and her hair still waving in the wind that the attack created. She was as graceful as a dancer, as practiced and precise as any soldier. "I'm here now, aren't I? Sometimes it takes a while to be brave! It took me ten years, but I came back. I'm here. I'm with you."

"No you aren't! There's no Amarantha on staff!" Raging Campfire spat the words accusingly as she made herself heavy enough to land.

Stargazer followed afterwards, and the Care Package Precure backed up as the two took their battle to the ground. Cure Forest looked over at Cure Marshmallow. "Marshie, do you think we should help?"

Marshmallow was still breathing heavily as she watched. "I don't know. How could she be alive? Campfire was so sure that she…"

"Does it matter?" asked Cure Cocoa, her eyes flickering back and forth between the two adult Cures. "She's here now."

"Assuming that is her." Forest's voice was laced with confusion and stubborn denial. "I've seen this stuff on shows before. Maybe she's some sort of mirage."

From the battle, the girls watched Campfire aim a kick at Stargazer. When the older Cure went to dodge, Campfire swung a fist. Stargazer managed to jump back only just in time. She glanced at her Courage Bead bracelet, which the four CITs saw was completely filled. For a split second, she reached for a bead, then glanced at Marshmallow, Cocoa, and Belay.

"This fight doesn't look like a mirage," said Cure Belay dryly.

By the time Stargazer's attention was back on the fight, Raging Campfire's claws were nearing Stargazer's face, and she had to drop quickly to the ground to dodge them. "Forest!" she said lowly as she slid between Campfire's knees, "You didn't exhaust yourself. Did you?"

Cure Forest frowned. "No."

"I need your help to purify her!"

Cure Cocoa put one hand to her heart. "Wait! What do you mean, purify her. Will she be okay?"

Stargazer flashed a look to Belay, one only the two of them saw. "She'll be fine. Better than ever, in fact."

"And we should trust you why?" asked Forest.

"Because cliche as it is, you don't have another option!" Stargazer somersaulted out of Raging Campfire's reach to avoid another claw attack.

Campfire hissed. "Yes, you do. Give in. It's so easy to be strong once you realize that bravery does nothing!"

"This isn't what you want for these campers," Stargazer shot back, standing and facing Campfire, her face stern. "This is magic coloring the world in a way that destroys its purity. Rest assured, we'll show you that pure world once again, Biddy. Forest! Are you with me, or not?"

Cure Forest looked to Cure Marshmallow. After a beat, the leader of the team nodded her approval.

As Forest ran forward to meet Cure Stargazer, Raging Campfire snarled and reached out to grab her. It seemed to be in slow motion that the claws swiped for a taste of Forest. It was even slower that Cure Cocoa darted in front. Campfire's hand closed around Cocoa's arm, which was up to protect her face.

The light drained from Cocoa's eyes as Raging Campfire smiled, all fangs and terror. "Not who I intended, but so, so sweet a fear. Oh, Brooke. You're so afraid you'll never be good enough, not for others and not for yourself. Let me help you see things clearly. You won't. You might as well quit and let them define you by your neurodivergence and disabilities, that's all you are…"

Forest growled, the sound almost inhuman. "Don't you _dare_ talk that way to Cocoa, I'll fight you!"

"Forest!" Stargazer said, a snap in her voice. "Don't fall for the bait, the best thing we can do for both of them is purification. She's weak right now, believe it or not. You four did a number on her!"

"But!" protested Forest, looking at Cocoa's blank eyes and limp form, sprawled on the forest ground.

"Come on! We don't have much time left! She might be weak, but she has more stamina than any of us! Let's get her while she's gloating!"

Raging Campfire rolled her eyes. "Oh, Stargazer, I can't believe I ever idolized you. Don't you know better than to call out your plans in front of the enemy?"

"I refuse to believe you're an enemy." Stargazer's voice was firm, somehow cold and warm at the same time. "You're someone very dear to my heart, and always will be."

Campfire began to laugh, throwing her head back. "Oh, how funny. If that was true, wouldn't you have let me know you were ali-"

"NOW!"

Forest grabbed Stargazer's hand, and the pair summoned their weapons as Marshmallow and Belay looked on. "Bluebell Batonette!" "Starlight Staff!"

"You don't stand a chance, not against the power of Infinite Rose and Color War!" said Campfire as she curled her hands out for a retaliation.

Stargazer wagged a finger with the hand that held her staff. "It's too late for their forces… and it's only now beginning for you, Bridget Hadyn. Ready, Vita?"

"Ready!" said Cure Forest.

"Fears be banished!" they cried together. "Courageous Finale!"

From their staffs shot a beam of white light, one that hit Campfire dead in the chest. She cried out as a black Courage Bead with white, reflective flames fell from her heart, and it bounced to the ground as the demonic appearance of Raging Campfire faded, and Biddy dropped to her knees, then slumped onto the ground.

The three conscious Care Package Cures rushed over to her. "Biddy! Biddy!" said Marshmallow, shaking her counselor.

Stargazer shook her head. "She'll wake when she is ready to. For now, just make her comfortable. I have to go."

She turned to walk off, but Belay ran up, thrusting her arms out to block the older Cure's path. "No, wait. You have to tell us who you are. How are you alive? You can't just reveal yourself and leave, especially not in front of Biddy."

"Yeah!" said Forest. "That's super sucky, really."

Stargazer glowered. "Are you going to hold me here until Biddy awakens? Or let me go and then tell her everything? Is this really how you want her to find out?"

"No, but…"

"I will reveal myself when I'm ready to, when the time is right. I did not die, and frankly, I don't know why she thought I did. I left, and then I came back. I didn't intend to have to reveal my magical form, but no matter, it's fine. Now, I'm going to try to find out how this happened so I can keep my camp safe. You will _not_ tell your counselor that I'm here and alive."

"But…" protested Forest once again.

"No buts." Stargazer's voice was cold. "You five have bigger things to worry about. There are people who suspect that there are camper Cures. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. If they can confirm those suspicions, I'll be forced to take action against you. I don't want to have to do that."

Marshmallow frowned. "You've said it before?"

Cure Stargazer looked at Cure Belay. A moment passed between the two of them. Then, Stargazer sighed. "Well, I'll be off before they awaken. Stay safe, Mallory. Harper, Vita. Goodbye." With a graceful leap, she jumped into the air, bounding out of the woods and towards main camp.

As the three of them detransformed, still watching the point where Stargazer became too faint to see, they heard a groan and looked down to see Biddy holding her head. "What just happened?" she groaned.

* * *

 _EYECATCH 1: A brief montage of Vita moments: snuggling up to Delcine, performing karaoke badly, eating pancakes, and doing a high kick as Cure Forest._

 _EYECATCH 2: Myfanwy and Hestia fly in circles, then fall down. They land on a grassy patch, where Vita has set up a picnic that is only full of sweets._

* * *

It was four hours later, during free time after dinner, that the four CIT Cures found time alone to meet at the picnic table outside their cabin. There was a tenseness to the atmosphere that found hold in each girl in a different way. Mallory spun dark curls around a slightly-lighter finger. Harper doodled frantically… each chibi that seemed to flow from her fancy artist pens had the stern, cool look of the Cure they had met earlier. Vita sat on a bench, bouncing her knees, and Brooke paced nearby, gnawing her chewing necklace thoughtfully. For a long, long time there was simply silence.

Then, Vita pounded her fists on the table. "What in the name of Juliette Gordon Low herself was that? We can't tell Biddy that her idol is alive? That's so bad!"

"She basically threatened us. If we want to keep protecting the camp, there's nothing we can do," Harper said glumly.

Mallory exhaled deeply. "Well, nothing we can do obviously, anyway. We'll have to be discreet."

"There's our fearless leader talking," said Vita with a tiny grin. "I'm up for antics. What are we going to do?"

"We've got to somehow get Cure Stargazer out in the open in a situation where Biddy hasn't lost her memory, right? Speaking of that, how are you doing, Brooke?"

Brooke's pacing speed immediately quickened as she let the necklace fall from her mouth. "I… I don't like this. I don't like waking up without memory. It's like having a seizure… and my heart's so fast…"

Harper stood, reaching her arms out towards Brooke in an unspoken invitation for a hug. Brooke dove into it gratefully. "Brooke, let's sit down. You're working yourself up, and it's making me more anxious."

"I'll be fine."

Harper raised an eyebrow. "I'm not trying to baby you. I legitimately feel a raise in my heart rate just from watching." Brooke hummed approval, then kept humming a little under her breath as she sat next to Harper, leaning her head on her friend's shoulder. Already, she seemed to be calming slightly.

There was a beat of silence. Mallory looked at the three of her friends, each obviously shaken… but Harper a little less so than the others. She thought about how Cure Belay had seemed oddly assured through the battle. The secret looks that she had shared with Stargazer and the confident statements made her think. "Harper? Did we do this before?"

"Huh? What?" asked the usually collected girl.

"Brooke and Biddy don't remember any of this. Did this happen before? Did we fight someone who was like that?"

There was a moment of silence before Harper responded. "Yes. And we almost lost until Cure Stargazer showed up. I'm the only one who remained standing."

"Who-" started Vita.

Harper interrupted. "It's not important."

"That means it's me," Brooke said quietly, taking her head off of Harper's shoulder and looking at the girl. "Isn't it." Another silence, then a nod from Harper. Brooke took a deep, staggering breath. "Okay. That's scary. I kind of hate that."

"At least we know what to do! A purifying attack can work! That's good news! And now that most of us remember, we'll be able to stop it quickly if it happens again. It's nothing to worry about." Mallory was firm and confident, looking each of her friends in the eyes. "We're going to take care of each other and make sure that this doesn't happen this bad again, if it happens at all!"

"It may have to happen again," said Vita, looking a bit more relaxed as she leaned forward on the table, head in her hands. "It's the only way we know of to get Stargazer out, right?"

Harper frowned. "There has to be another way."

"But what if there isn't? Don't you think it's important that Biddy finds out Amarantha is alive? Like, if my idol and big sister type super died, I'd want to know she wasn't actually super mega dead."

"I refuse to make anyone else go through that!" Brooke frowned fiercely. "Harper's right. We should be able to find another way to track her down if we just look!"

"We could google her," suggested Mallory. "Maybe not right now, but over the weekend."

"That's a whole week away!" Vita groaned. "And I bet all that'll come up are, like, articles about the fire that Biddy was in. She said she even did an interview right before coming to camp this year!"

Brooke stood up and started pacing again. "I bet if we were very observant and asked the right questions, somebody in the camp might know who Amarantha is. She managed to come into camp, and she acted like she belonged here, even with all of the changes that have happened. Vita, you've been here for just as long as Biddy, right? A lot has changed?"

"Oh, totally! The dining hall was renovated, arts and crafts was rebuilt, we added a low ropes course…" The blonde girl started ticking things off on her fingers as she listed the changes.

"So even if Amarantha isn't on staff this year, maybe there's a chance she knows the camp pretty well anyway."

"Weekend staff?" suggested Harper doubtfully. "For the events that they have during the school year that they call in help for?"

"Could be."

Mallory stood, grinning. "All right! It's settled! We're going to very discreetly ask around! Time to solve the mystery, case name: help Biddy find Amarantha! And our mission starts… right now!"

* * *

In the Legendary Land, Cardinal sprawled across a deep burgundy couch. "I'm almost loathe to admit it," he mused, "but this is definitely nice."

"Ya got that right," agreed Plum as she cracked her neck and settled against her own violet armchair. "The boss really set us up, huh?"

"And she finally put that dumb throne room out of its misery. It's been ten years, nobody's going back for this kingdom. Its people are all hopeless, Humglums, and its princess ran away to the Hearth Queendom, right? And now that's ours as well!" Cobalt cackled.

Cardinal chuckled as well, rolling his shoulders back. "Let her run, let her run."

"No," said a voice from the door. "Do not. We need Princess Miffy, as well as the Infinite Princess of Earth. I will not stop until I am completed! Is that clear?"

At the voice of Infinite Rose, the five villains lounging in their new hideout fell silent, straightening in their chairs. "Is that clear?" repeated Infinite Rose, more forcefully this time.

"Yes," murmured five voices.

Infinite Rose huffed, sounding unconvinced. "Sometimes I wonder if you doubt my power. You fail me time and time again. You take entirely too long to do simple tasks. And now I worry you're giving up!"

"No, no, of course not, milady," Cardinal said frantically. "My plan may be slow, but it's all for you, it's all for the good of the universe. We need to be stealthy to defeat the Precure."

"Your Despair Beads do little but inconvenience them and make them cry. I want my soul back, and I need the Infinite Princesses in order to restore it. You will hasten whatever it is you are doing, or face the wrath of a goddess, Cardinal." Infinite Rose's voice was cold as frost as she turned to leave, pausing slightly as she took a step out of the door. "The rest of you will step up as well. I care little if your Humglums live or are purified, but they must cause damage to the Earth so that the Princess has no choice but to reveal herself. Support each other in your endeavors. No more petty bickering."

"Yes, mother," sneered Xanthe under her breath.

"What was that?" Infinite Rose's voice was dangerous.

Xanthe paled. "N-nothing, my goddess."

"Not goddess. Not anymore. Not yet."

"Yes, milady."

"Good." With that, Infinite Rose left, slipping from the penthouse that now served as Color War's base. Where she went, not even Cardinal knew, as she would never let anyone follow.

There was a beat of silence before their leader's words went forgotten, Cobalt sneering at Cardinal. "So, got a little chewed out, huh? So how _is_ that new general going? Cure Campfire sure was a washup."

"Cure Campfire was only a means to get to an end," Cardinal said as he relaxed back into the sofa. "I've had my eyes on a single target since the beginning."

"And who might that be?" asked Plum.

Cardinal grinned, baring fangs. His eyes seemed to deepen into a more dramatic red. "Why, there truly is only one option. The legendary, the heroine, the powerful. The savior. Who else but Cure Stargazer herself?"

* * *

 _ED: Summer Camp Can-Can_


End file.
